Irregular Meetings Across Time and Space
by Sealgirl
Summary: COMPLETE An alternative version of The Time Lost. Written for DDCC2007
1. Paradox

DISCLAIMER: The D&D lot aren't mine. But what they do, and the other bits are!

STORY: Written as part of the DDCC 2007 for Random Scribbles as a Dream made Real (or as real as fanfiction gets!). So the basic idea is from her, and much cheering and fish is being sent her way!  
Also written for the ff100 LJ community - with the prompt "Time"

THANKS - Tang appears with special permission from NeilG - thank you for letting me borrow him :)

RATING: PG13.

* * *

Chapter 1

"Paradox"

'_Dungeonmaster! What's happening? Dungeonmaster?'_

'_What's going on?'_

'_Where are they? I don't know what's…'_

_There was a familiar voice in the maelstrom._

'_Do not worry my children, you are confused, I know. But be assured that your friends _are_ safe. For the moment.'_

'_What's happened to them? Where have they gone? How can we get them back?!'_

'_There is only one way to help them. It will not be easy, but it is the only way. If you should fail…' Ring, ring. Ring, ring. _Ring, ring.

Ring-ring.

Diana was asleep, but not deeply enough to ignore the sound. The ringing continued for a few moments. She recognised it, but it was a noise from long ago and one she hadn't heard in a long, long time. But it was still familiar…Ring, ring. Ring, ring.

Her eyes snapped open: It was the sound of a phone ringing!

Even as she sat up, she already knew she was home. She sat in her bed and looked round her room with her mouth open, staring in astonishment.

Everything seemed exactly as it should have been, exactly normal, except it was the best sight in the world! Her trophies were on the window sill, her pennants on the wall, the familiar smell of washing powder and perfume from her cupboard. Over by the window were her clothes in a pile, lovely REAL clothes that could keep her warm, her school books on the table, her homework…

She was home!

For a few moments, she just stared around her, confused. She was back at home.

She was really _home_!

There were muffled voices outside her door and she sprang out of bed. _Mom and Dad!_

She yanked open the door, looking around still in shock and amazement.

'Guess who was on the phone!' came a smug voice from close by. 'Dad was talking to him!'

David was standing there, her cocky little brother, his arms crossed and looking about as smug as little brothers could get. She didn't know whether or not to chase him or hug him. For a moment she just stared at him, then she grinned.

'Where's Mom and Dad?'

'Downstairs with breakfast,' he said, a little confused. 'And Dad's on the phone… to _him_!'

Diana really didn't care what David was getting at, so she just turned away, part of her knowing that her indifference to his hints would be infuriating.

She bounded down the stairs, running her hand over the cold banister, looking round at her house and feeling wonderful that she was actually home!

Part of her didn't want to believe it had all happened. She knew it had, even though now it seemed like a dream. She could vividly remember their adventures, she could still remember how it had felt to hold a dying Kosar in her arms, she could still remember looking through all those portals and never finding her way home. And now… she was back home.

_How?_

For the first time, she frowned. It was strange; she couldn't actually remember how she got here. She could remember something about a crystal and magic and change, but it was all hazy, as if part of her didn't want to remember.

She paused on the stair and looked around at her house. It looked the same, the same colours on the wall, the carpet was the same, and the pictures, and the furniture. It sounded the same as well, the soft hum of the air conditioning, and faint sound of the radio from the kitchen. She could smell breakfast, orange juice and toast, and the furniture polish, and the subtle smell that was just her home.

This is real and not a dream, she could feel it. It was as real as the Realm had been. Still, something felt a little odd. It was almost as if…

'Hey there, superstar!' said her Dad, appearing out of the kitchen door.

She didn't expect the feeling of relief and overwhelming happiness at seeing her Dad. He was just standing in the doorway smiling at her as if nothing in the world had changed.

Diana jumped down the last few steps and threw her arms around him.

'Hey, hey! What was that for?'

'Nothing, Dad, just for being you!'

The moment of blissful relief was broken when her Dad said:

'So this has nothing to do with going to the Amusement Park, then?'

Diana froze.

'W-what do you mean?'

Her Dad was looking at her his eyebrows slightly raised. She knew that expression so well. God, how she had missed him!

'I know that young man wants to take you this morning, but I'm still not happy about it, Diana. I haven't said yes, yet.'

Her expression must have betrayed more of her confusion than anything else as her Dad's smile softened.

'You're a good girl, Diana. You work hard and your training is going just fine. I suppose one day off won't matter. Just don't make a habit of it!'

For the previous months, Diana had lived and survived off her instincts, and just at that moment they hit red. Something was wrong. Really, really wrong!

This was something she'd done before, but slightly differently. Her Dad had said those exact same words to her, the day they had gone to the Amusement Park. The day they had all gone to the Realm. The day it all changed!

And yet here she was, back before it all happened.

'Diana, are you ok? I said yes, is that such a surprise?'

She smiled up at her Dad and gave him another hug, burying her head in his shoulder and trying not to cry. Oh God, she was home and she didn't have to go to the Realm.

'Hey, hey, superstar,' he said gently, rubbing her back. 'It's ok, it wasn't that big a deal! Go say good morning to your Mom and get some breakfast!'

Diana looked up, through the doorway into the kitchen beyond. Her Mom was standing in the kitchen, moving the glasses of orange juice across to the table. She was dressed in her plain top and trousers (her favourite pair), she was wearing her familiar earrings and the watch that her Dad had given her on their silver wedding anniversary. Diana almost missed her step as she moved, and then she ran over to engulf her Mom in another hug.

'Good morning, dear,' she said gently. 'Your Dad said "yes", didn't he?'

Diana nodded, not able to say anything for fear of starting to cry. It was almost unbelievable, she hadn't seen them for months, even years and they didn't know or understand. But she was just too pleased to be home.

It was normal, it was just as she had left it. It was so… weird!

Somehow she had expected the world to have changed while she and the others were in the Realm, and life to have gone on without her. She had often lain awake at night thinking about them; how they were, what they were doing, and whether they were worrying about her, too. Now she was being held by her Mother in a loving embrace, as if nothing had happened.

It seemed that everything was the same, and all that worrying had been pointless. The trip to the Realm hadn't even happened yet. It was the same as is had been. It was exactly the same. _Wasn't it?_

She let go of her Mom and slipped into her usual seat at the breakfast bar. The TV was on in the corner; there was food, the usual sounds and smells. She hadn't expected coming home to be so normal and quiet. She just sat there, sipping her juice and looking round for a long while.

'You're very quiet, dear,' said her Mom at last. 'Are you sure you're all right?'

Diana nodded, toying with her empty glass and the final corner of her toast.

'I'm fine, just a little tired from… everything.'

'You have been working far too hard,' said her Mom. 'That training schedule is so strict. And I'm glad you're going out with your new friends today. You could really use the break.'

'Did you convince him?' asked Diana suddenly. 'Dad's not usually so adaptable!'

Her Mom smiled a secretive smile.

'He has his weaknesses,' she said. 'Let's just leave it at that. And speaking of which, you'd better go and get dressed! Your not going to the Amusement Park dressed like in just your nightshirt, young lady!'

Diana didn't really want to leave her Mom's company, but she was right. She had to shower and dress and get ready for meeting the others.

Her friends… she wondered how they were this morning. It seemed so odd not to be with them as she had woken up in their company every day for months.

'Hurry up, Diana!' her Dad called from the other room. 'We're going soon!'

She bounced up the stairs to the bathroom, showered and threw on some casual clothes, all the time marvelling at how wonderful it felt to be home, with warm water for a shower, soap and proper clothes.

Her Dad was waiting for her in the hall as she came downstairs and for a moment, she hesitated. It was so wonderful and so perfect that she wanted to stay there all day with her family, to keep them close.

Though part of her didn't want to go, it seemed that her Mom had twisted Dad's arm and she didn't want to seem ungrateful. And another part of her, a growing part of her was dying to go and find the other five and see how they were.

But now she thought about it, something was wrong with that idea. There was something she had to do… Everything was normal. _Wasn't it?_

'Diana! Time to go!'

Her Mom ducked round the door.

'See you later, dear. Don't be late!'

That sounded vaguely ominous to Diana, and she frowned.

'Don't look so worried, Diana,' said her Mom, kissing her cheek. 'I'm sure you will have a lovely time! Now, go on! Your Dad's half way out of the door! You don't want to keep him waiting!'

She obeyed, and raced out to the waiting car.

Then she sat beside her Dad in silence, watching the houses and gardens, cars and people as they drove past, finding the world and the way it moved and changed on its own it endlessly fascinating. Here there was no need to worry about monsters jumping out at you, or finding somewhere safe to sleep, and if you needed to get home, you just called your Dad!

Being in a car was strange; getting somewhere without having to walk was also strange! Just sitting back and relaxing was alien to her now and she glanced nervously around her all the time. Her Dad had noticed and commented, but had put it down to the excitement of meeting the others.

The anticipation of seeing her friends was building with every moment that passed. She didn't realise how much she had missed them, and she was virtually hanging out of the window by the time they arrived.

'Have a good time, Diana,' her Dad said. 'Remember, don't be late.'

He gave her a big smile, and she smiled back, enjoying the moment.

'Thanks for letting me go today, Dad,' she said.

'That's alright, Diana. Now get going before they wonder what's happened to you!'

She kissed him on the cheek and leaped out of the car.

'Bye, Dad!'

Diana looked round to the Park as she heard her Dad drive off, seeing the entrance just ahead. She was the last to arrive, just like last time, and the other five were waiting for her just by the gateway. She recognised them, she recognised them all, but something was wrong.

Everything was normal. _Wasn't it?_

She stood and stared.

Sheila was there, her little brother a short distance away, looking in through the fence at the rides and hotdog stands beyond. Presto was there as well, and he waved at her.

But Diana didn't wave back. Instead she was staring at the other two boys, one dark haired, one blonde. She recognised them, she knew them; in fact she was going out with one of them.

But they weren't Hank and Eric!

For the second time that morning Diana was lost for words.

Then the taller boy, with blonde hair and Nordic good looks jogged over to her and took her arm.

'Hi Diana,' he said.

For a second the words still wouldn't come out. She just stared at him, her boyfriend, her mind in a whirl as she understood what had happened. She could remember.

'Diana,' he said, giving her a quick hug, 'there's no need to stare like that!'

She forced out a smile.

'Hi Joseph,' she said finally.


	2. Heads I Win, Tails You Lose

Chapter 2

"Heads I Win, Tails You Lose"

How could she have forgotten? How could she have forgotten something as important as that! How? HOW? _HOW!_

But she knew. And now she had remembered, she didn't want to remember. And she didn't want to go back! Not now! It just wasn't fair!

She took a slow breath, walking next to Joseph towards the others. She had to calm down. She had to keep calm and think. She was home, but it was the wrong home. It looked like it had been, but things were missing, and different. And that was what Dungeonmaster had warned them about. Hank and Eric were gone.

She could remember being in the Realm, swathed in magic, and struggling to understand…

'_What's happened? Where have they gone?' demanded Bobby. 'What's going on!'_

_Dungeonmaster looked sadly round at the four remaining children. It was a look Diana didn't like. Uni nuzzled into their Guide's hand, trying to reassure him._

'_Venger has used the Crystal of Kronos to take them from their homes before they met you,' the old man said. 'Now they work for Venger, in a different Realm.'_

_There was a long, cold, terrible silence._

'_Why are we still here?' asked Presto at last. 'If the Realm is different, why aren't we?'_

'_I have used magic,' Dungeonmaster replied sombrely. 'All my magic. But even this will not last long. You must be quick, before my magic runs dry and you are trapped.'_

_Presto gulped. So did Bobby and Sheila. Diana didn't only because her mouth was so dry._

'_What are we gonna do, Dungeonmaster?' she asked. ' How are we gonna get Hank and Eric back!'_

'_There is only one way, my children. You must go to this new Realm and find them.'_

'_Find them?' asked Sheila, sniffing back tears. 'How?'_

'_It will not be easy,' he replied. 'You must return to your homes; but then you will have to travel here, back into the new Realm that they have created with Venger. Then you will have to persuade them to travel back to this Realm.'_

'_But how? How are we going to do all this!' said Shelia. 'It's impossible! We've lost them forever!'_

_Dungeonmaster laid a hand on her arm and smiled at her kindly._

'_You will use the Crystal of Kronos, it is the key to your journey and your safe return. Through its power you will travel back to the day before you entered the Realm. But beware, all of you, for there will be much to distract you there! And when you reach the new, altered Realm, there will be much to distract you there as well. But above all else you MUST persuade all of your friends to use the Crystal. If they do not, then I can do no more.'_

How could she have forgotten so much? And how were they ever going to succeed?

She wished more than anything that she could have time to think about this, but she didn't it was here and now. They had to act: Now.

But what were they going to do?

Diana let herself be lead up to the others, where Sheila and Presto both gave her a look that asked the same question, and she had no doubt that they were in the same predicament as she was! Bobby didn't seem that interested in her, but he probably remembered as well.

There was one other boy in the group, a friend of Presto's from school called Ray that Diana only knew vaguely. He hadn't been at the school long, and was considered a bit of a nerd, like Presto, but good at history and French rather than math and science. And he seemed to have taken quite a liking to Sheila.

'Now we are all hear,' said Joseph, 'it's time to go!'

He slipped his arm round Diana's shoulders and led then to the turn-styles. He insisted on paying as well, saying that it was his treat, and no one voiced any objections.

They were back in the Amusement Park. She looked around with her mouth open, feeling slightly sick. How many times has she wished to have that day back again, and wished that she could make different choices.

And now she could.

She didn't have to go anywhere near that stupid ride. She could stay here with her friends and family. She didn't have to go through, not if she didn't want to. Diana looked round at the others, seeing her feelings echoed on the faces of the other three.

It was one of the strangest experiences of her life, even counting all the time she'd spent in the Realm battling for her life against Orcs and dragons. She spent a while wondering what was the matter before realising what was wrong: it was just so normal. It was nice! She was having _fun_!! When was the last time she had actually had fun like this, in safety without worrying about staying alive or saving the world? When was the last time she had had any fun at all?

As they walked around, Joseph rarely let go of her arm, and in spite of her confusion and worries she found herself enjoying all the attention he was giving her. He was tall, and slim built, but had the blonde, Nordic good looks of his German ancestors.

And he was rich. Not rich-like-Eric rich, he wasn't a snob or elitist in any way, quite the opposite, in fact. He never flashed his money around, or only on very rare occasions. There were rumours at school that the money was dirty somehow, and that was why he didn't boast; something to do with the War and his granddad. But no one had ever asked him and Diana had never paid much attention to the whispers or the gossip. She had enough of that on her own account to put up with!

So she was content to walk around enjoying the ice creams and the conversation and the company, at least for a little while, and pretend that everything was alright. She could pretend that her memories were just a dream and that this was the world the way it was meant to be.

But all the time was the feeling inside that they had to do something. They had to act, they had no choice, not if they wanted to help Eric and Hank.

And every so often Diana would look round at Presto and Sheila, and see them looking back at her, aching to get some time alone with them so they could talk.

Eventually, just before lunchtime, they got their chance.

The six of them had been walking around the boating pond in the centre, when Bobby suddenly pointed at something.

'The Spinner!' he shouted. 'Can we go on the Spinner, Sheila! _Please_!'

'Oh, no Bobby, not that one! I hate that one,' said his sister. 'It makes me feel all dizzy and sick.'

Bobby looked terribly disappointed, but to her surprise, Ray was looking disappointed too. And Diana suddenly had a wonderful idea.

'Say, Joseph,' she whispered. 'How about taking Ray and Bobby on the Spinner. Just look at their faces! It would make their day!'

Joseph smiled at her. She loved that smile, so clear and light and just… _No! Stop it! She told herself. That is NOT going to help!_

'Sure!' said Joseph with a nod. He turned to the others. 'Say, you two! Why don't we three go on the Spinner? How about you, Presto?'

Presto looked startled.

'Ah… um… no! All that centrifugal force… yuk! I'm, um, gonna, go and get… a drink! Yeah, a drink! You guys want anything?'

Joseph and Ray shook their heads and Bobby wasn't listening, as he was already half way across to the queue for the ride.

The moment they were out of earshot Sheila turned to Diana.

'You remember it, don't you?' she asked urgently. 'You remember Hank? Don't you? And Eric? Don't you…?'

Diana nodded, feeling slightly faint. This was real, it wasn't some sort of strange dream as a small part of her had hoped. Presto nodded as well.

'Then I don't understand what happened,' said Sheila. 'They're gone. And we're home and everything is normal except that they're gone!'

The three looked at each other, and Diana saw her inner confusion mirrored on the faces of the other two. She tried to concentrate, but it was all vague and fuzzy, like a dream. She still remembered them, and what Dungeonmaster had said, but it was getting hard and harder to hold on.

'I don't think anyone has heard of them,' said Presto. 'Hank's old house is derelict. And when I pointed it out to my Dad, he seemed really uncomfortable! No one had lived there for years.'

'What about Bobby?' said Diana, turning to Sheila. 'Does he remember anything?'

Sheila nodded, and the look on her face was one of sadness.

'He knows, he remembers, but how can I take him back? Knowing what it's like there! I can't! But I can't leave Hank…' She pursed her lips, fighting back tears. 'I don't know what to do.'

Diana tried to smile at the other girl, hoping to reassure her, but her own heart wasn't in it. She felt exactly the same way. Now she had come home, and even though she had only been back here for a morning, she didn't want to go back to fighting and sleeping rough and scavenging for food. She wanted to say here, with her family and her friends.

But no matter how had she tired to thing about all the good things, there was always that little, nagging voice in the back of her head that kept on chanting _what about Eric and Hank…?_

'I don't want to go back, either,' she said at last. 'But I don't think we have much of a choice.'

'No,' said Presto firmly, 'we _do_ have a choice. We don't have to go. We don't have to do what Dungeonmaster told us.' He looked round at the girls, and his face was dark. 'We have a choice, and we know the right one to take. But, still…'

He looked away.

'We know what to do,' Diana said. 'It's just doing it that's going to be the problem.'

For a long moment they sat in silence.

Diana looked around the Amusement Park, at the rides and all the happy people having fun without a care in the world. It wasn't fair. She wanted to be like them, and not have to worry about saving peoples lives or rescuing friends or scavenging for food or sleeping rough, or Orcs or Dragons or giants or any of the thousand other reasons she hated the Realm.

But she knew what they had to do.

Bobby, Joseph and Ray returned surprisingly soon, the two older boys laughing and joking, with Bobby (and his fearsome expression) leading them on. Neither of the two boys noticed the change in Presto, Sheila or Diana as they each put on a brave face for the moment.

Though she smiled and took Joseph's arm, the growing feeling of fear and anticipation didn't leave Diana. It was coming, soon. They were going to have to go.

The people around her laughed and smiled; the tempting smell of fast food grew stronger; there was the sound of whirring rides and happy children. Joseph kept hold of her hand, and cast admiring in her direction.

It was wonderful. It was perfect.

Then they rounded a corner and suddenly, there it was in front of them: The Ride.

It was larger than she remembered it; the gaping maw of the Dragon at the entrance seemed wider and darker, and almost leering at her. She shivered suddenly in the warm sunlight. Joseph and Ray walked on oblivious to what was going on, but the three older ones stopped and looked at each other.

Bobby, however, being Bobby ran on ahead.

'Look!' he cried. 'It's the Dungeons and Dragons Ride! Let's go!'

'Bobby, are you…?' asked Sheila.

She didn't continue, and Diana could understand why. Bobby had turned and there was a look on the young boy's face that was so grown-up and so knowing that there was no need to ask what he was thinking.

Diana glanced to Presto, who gave an imperceptible nod.

'Let's go!'

'Cool!' chimed in Ray. 'The game is great!'

Diana looked at him in surprise.

'I've played it with some of my friends,' he explained, seeing her expression. 'It's fun, you get to be someone else for a while, explore a new place, a new world. It's really exciting!'

He seemed so genuinely enthusiastic that Diana was at a loss for words. She didn't reply, not wanting to burst his bubble. Not just yet.

'Well, come on and get in line!' called Joseph. 'Before we have to wait all year!'

The six of them waited in line, Diana with a serious sense of déjà vu. She kept looking at Sheila and Presto, and Bobby too, and inside her the fear was building.

There were no guarantees. There might be no way back. She didn't really know what was ahead, but if they turned round and went somewhere else they could stay at home. They didn't have to go through all that again.

She looked at Joseph as he chatted to Ray, his lovely smile and the confident charm he had. He reminded her so much of Kosar, even down to the beautiful shade of his eyes. She didn't want to have to leave this behind.

_But what about Eric? And what about Hank?_ the nagging voice persisted.

Her heart lurched slightly as she thought of her two missing friends. Hank she had always looked up to, he was their leader and someone she cared about very deeply; and that didn't even _begin_ to cover what Sheila thought about him.

Then there was Eric; proud, infuriating, irritating and occasionally wonderful. She didn't know how she felt about him. Since meeting Kosar, things had been different between them. He didn't pester her the way he'd used to, he didn't needle her or annoy her either. It was almost as if he was being, heaven forbid, _thoughtful_!

But the bottom line was, she missed him. She missed the way they would verbally spar, or the way he would try and sneak up behind her just because he knew she hated it. He missed the temper tantrums and the stupid comments and the jokes and the fun and the way he grinned at her.

Ahead, the line was growing shorter, there were only a few people in front of them. It was going to be their turn very soon. Sheila and Diana looked at each other. The intermittent conversation had fizzled out, even Joseph and Ray were quiet in anticipation.

The last few minutes of waiting were the worst torture Diana had ever experienced (with one exception). Her heart was thudding as if she had been running a marathon, it was like waiting at the state championships for the result, only worse; a thousand times worse. This wasn't sport, or a game. This was real life!

Then she felt Joseph take her arm.

'You look really scared, Diana. You don't have to go if you don't want to.'

This was her chance to get out of it. She didn't have to go through that all again. _But what about Eric and Hank?_ She pursed her lips, and shook her head, as firmly as she could.

'I'm fine.'

'Well c'mon, then!' said Ray. 'Smile a little. It's supposed to be fun!'

He gave Sheila an extra wide grin, and she tried to smile back, as well as she could.

The car drew up beside them.

'In you go, kids,' said the attendant, lifting the safety bar. 'Three in the front, three in the back.'

In spite of her resolve, Diana hesitated. But fortunately for them all, Bobby stomped forward and took his seat in the front left. Sheila joined him, and Ray snuck in beside her. In the back, Diana slid into her seat behind Bobby, feeling a little faint. Joseph sat next to her, and Presto was last.

She held her breath as the car sat still. She wondered how the others were feeling, were they feeling as scared and as sad as she was? Was she ever going to see home again?

Finally, with a jerk, the car moved forward towards the open mouth of the dragon. There was no turning back now. They had to go through with it, just like they did before.

It was exactly the same as last time, the mechanical dragons, the fire and smell of oil and exhaust fumes. For a moment, she worried that nothing was going to happen, and that all the worrying and fear had been in vain.

The car trundled on, past the animated creatures and the fake castles, and Diana looked around, panic growing.

What if nothing happened? What if they didn't go back? what if Hank and Eric were stuck forever away from their friends? What if…?

Ahead there was a creak of grinding metal, and a bright blue spark flashed across her vision. _This is it_!

'What's happening?' Ray shouted.

No one else spoke.

Then there was a flash of light and then the oddly familiar feeling of falling.


	3. In The Realm Again

Chapter 3

"In the Realm Again"

Diana landed on the ground with a startling bump. It seemed to hurt more than she remembered. Beside her, there were the noises of the others, and in spite of her previous fears, she breathed a sigh of relief. They were back. They had made it safely!

They had returned to the Realm.

It was the same place as last time; with the nearby hills and the dusty ground and small floating islands in the sky close beside them. It was the same!

She looked down at herself and shivered. She was back in her furry brown shorts and bikini, complete with furry boots, and then glanced round at the others.

Sheila, Bobby and Presto were back in their "normal" Realm clothes and didn't look any different than she expected. It was Joseph and Ray she was staring at.

For some reason, she had assumed that they would somehow just have taken the places of the Ranger and the Cavalier. But they hadn't.

Ray was dressed in a blue, loose robe, similar to Presto's, but shorter, like a tunic and wore blue trousers underneath. He had a light cream coloured shirt, and a powder blue cap. He was looking very, very surprised.

Joseph was dressed in neatly fitted suit of armour; but not the mail shirt and breastplate of Eric, it seemed more like the armour of Sir John, but it was a dark gunmetal colour, with a cross symbol etched on the front, like an X. He had a helmet with a long, red plume as well, tucked under his arm.

But he wasn't looking surprised. He was looking furious!

'What the hell is going on!' said Joseph, looking around in fear. 'Where are we?'

Before anyone could answer there was an ear-splitting shriek from their left.

'Tiamat!' whispered Presto.

'Uni!' said Bobby hopefully. He looked round.

They waited, but nothing happened.

'Where is she?' Bobby asked Sheila plaintively. 'Where's Uni?'

'I…I don't know, Bobby,' his sister replied. 'I don't know. It will be ok, we'll find her. Don't worry.'

'Do you know what's going on?' demanded Joseph, grabbing Sheila by the arm. He glared at her and she tried to take a step away from him.

'W-well, n-not _really_,' stammered Sheila. 'It's just that, I…I…'

She trailed off, looking at the others for support.

Then there was another noise behind them, and they all turned.

But instead of the small white unicorn Diana had been expecting, there was a small, squat, bronzed-coloured dragon was scuttling across the ground. It wasn't watching where it was going and slammed straight into Bobby's legs.

For a moment it looked round confused, then it crouched down on the ground and hissed at him, its bright green eyes glowing.

'What the hell…!' gasped Joseph. 'That's a… that's a…'

'That's a bronze dragon,' finished Presto, clearly trying to be helpful.

But Joseph was not pleased.

'What is going on!' he demanded. 'Where are we? What's happened?'

'Fear not, children!' said a voice to their right.

Again, Diana turned, feeling more confused and afraid with every passing moment. Though she had recognised the voice, it was not the one she'd expected. It wasn't Dungeonmaster, it was…

'Zandora!' she said. 'What are you doing here?'

The little sorceress was standing just beside them, dressed just as Diana remembered (perhaps a bit more shabby, though). At her side was the Box.

'Yes, child, I am the Sorceress, Zandora! You know me?' asked the small woman in confusion. 'How?'

'Yeah,' said Joseph. 'How? I want a damn answer!'

He was glaring at Diana in fury, and she had never seen him like that before.

'It's really, really difficult to explain,' she said.

'So you do know!'

'Well… sort of, it's just…' She looked up into his perfect blue eyes, hoping that his anger would subside. She had no idea how to explain. Fortunately, Presto can to her rescue.

'Where's Dungeonmaster?' asked Presto, looking intently at the Sorceress. 'What's happened here?'

The old woman looked sadly to the ground.

'Dungeonmaster has been gone for years now,' she said. 'I tried to carry on and continue his work, but no one can replace him. How do you know of these things?'

'It's sort of difficult to explain,' Presto replied.

She nodded, and looked at him keenly, then at Bobby, Sheila and finally Diana herself. The look seemed to contain more than just an exchange of glances, and Diana shivered. Zandora was a sorceress, after all. Maybe she could tell that they were different, maybe she could tell what had happened to them.

'I sense magic about you,' she said at last. 'Strange, dangerous magic. I am unsure what to do. And yet… yet there is something that I must do. For your own protection.'

She opened the Box by her side, inside were their glowing weapons.

'There are few weapons left free of Evil's power. These six have been kept hidden for just this event.'

The kids looked at each other suspiciously as Zandora handed the weapons out.

'This is for you, Magician,' she said the Presto, handing him the Hat. 'And this is for you, Thief.' She gave the Cloak to Sheila. Then she handed the Javelin to Diana calling her "Acrobat" and the Club to Bobby, calling him "Barbarian".

Then Zandora turned to Joseph and Ray.

'These are for you,' she said. 'Paladin, and Sage.'

To Joseph she handed a beautiful curved sword, with a gilt handle which he took with very little enthusiasm. Zandora gave Ray a short wooden Staff, about a foot long with a bright red jewel fixed in the top. He looked at it, and gave it a little shake. The gemstone glowed, but nothing happened.

'How do we get home?' asked Joseph. 'Are we stuck here forever until we die?'

'There are few portals back to your own world,' said Zandora sadly. 'But you will be able to try to use them.'

'But…' said Ray, prompting the old woman. 'There, is a "but", right? There has to be!'

Zandora nodded slowly as she reached down to pet the little Bronze Dragon that was still sitting on the ground. This time it didn't hiss, but made a twanging-kind of sound.

'The Arch-Mage called Venger, knows of your arrival. He is a great Evil in our world, and he will stop at nothing to get these remaining weapons.'

'Why give then to us?' asked Ray suspiciously. 'Why not just keep them hidden?'

'You will need them, Sage, to survive!'

'That's all very well,' said Joseph, curtly. 'But what I want to know is why you all seem to know what's going on and I don't!' He glared round at the group with a deep frown. 'I want some answers!'

'Well, don't look at me!' said Ray. 'I've no idea what's going on. But getting angry about it isn't going to help!'

'She's gone!' said Presto suddenly. 'Jeez, just like the old man!'

Everyone turned to the place where Zandora had just been, but she had gone. There was nothing there but dust and the little Bronze dragon, sitting, waiting for something else to happen. It hissed at them again, but with no malice. Carefully, Sheila knelt down to pet it, as Zandora had done, and it started making that funny noise again.

As she watched the creature, Diana sensed someone staring at her. She knew who it was, but she didn't know what to say.

Joseph took hold of her arm. She looked up at him, her blood running cold at the sight of so much confusion and fury in his pale blue eyes. The only thing she could think of to say was the truth.

'This has happened to us before… in a sort of… different… world…' It sounded ridiculous, now she said it out loud. 'Our world is the mostly the same… just different in the details.'

'A different _world…_?' repeated Joseph incredulously.

'Yes,' chipped in Presto, in a serious tone. 'But something went wrong in our world, two of our friends were taken from it, and came here. We have to get them back. And the only way to do it was to go through your world. At least, I think that's right. Dungeonmaster was pretty vague on the…'

'But,' interrupted Joseph, 'that would mean you knew what was going to happen to us all, on the ride.' He wasn't looking at the Magician, but straight at Diana. 'You knew! You knew what was going to happen and you still let us all come here?'

'Yes,' she said, ashamed that her voice was faltering. But she lifted her head up proudly. 'Yes I did. Because I had to, we all had to.'

'Then why didn't you tell us?' he growled. 'We had a right to know! It was our choice too! You forced us to come here!'

'And you would have believed me, if I'd told you? You'd have thought I was mad!'

The Paladin made no reply for a long time.

'I trusted you, Diana,' he said at last. 'I thought that we had a good thing going. Why couldn't you have trusted me? All this, it's just too much, it's too…'

The words petered out. For a few moments no one spoke, and Joseph stared at the ground, shaking. Then he turned away and started to walk.

'It's not like that!' she called after him. 'Joseph, please!'

But the Paladin kept on walking.

Sheila took her arm, stopping her from following.

'Let him go, just for a while,' she said. 'It must seem like a crazy conspiracy, or something. Give him some time.'

there was a short silence.

'You know, I'm not exactly pleased, either!' said Ray from beside Presto.

The Magician turned to him looking incredibly embarrassed. Ray was holding his new Staff in one hand, but the other hand was planted firmly on his hips, and he was frowning.

'I'm sorry, Ray,' he said. 'I… don't know what I should say.'

'It's ok,' replied the Sage with a sigh. 'Like I said, getting angry about it isn't going to help!'

'I think,' said Presto slowly, 'that if we can get our friends back to through the Crystal of Kronos, then this should all sort itself out. You'll go back home, and forget any of this ever happened.'

'That's what I like to hear!' he said. 'You have a plan!'

'I wouldn't really go as far as calling it a fully-fledged plan. More of a theory, or hypothesis.'

'Or a guess?' Ray asked.

Presto nodded ruefully.

'A guess is better than nothing,' said Ray. 'I think.'

In the silence that followed Diana looked around at the hills and floating islands that were close by, remembering how she had felt the first time this had all happened. Inevitably, her gaze was draw to the way Joseph had walked off.

'I think should go and find him,' she said at last. 'We need to get moving. Who knows what's going to appear! And we have to try and find Eric and Hank.'

Without waiting for a reply, she jogged off over the ridge, following the dusty track as it wound upwards, away from the others.

She wasn't sure how far Joseph would have gone, and for a while she was worried that he would have just kept on walking, not caring about where he went or how far from the others he had gone. But within a minute she saw him, standing at the base of a small hill, sitting on the ground. His new Sword was pointing out in front on him, the handle in his hand, as if he was judging the weight of it.

He looked up as she approached, but did not acknowledge her.

A few feet away from him, she stopped.

'Hi,' she said.

The Paladin glared at her and didn't reply.

'Please, Joseph,' she said. 'Please give me a chance. To explain.'

'You can explain?'

'Well… no, not really explain, I suppose.'

Joseph looked down to his Sword and took a long, deep breath.

'What's going on?' he asked.

Diana told him what she could about her Realm, and what had happened, and also Presto's theory that they would all go back to the way it was supposed to be after they found Hank and Eric.

Joseph listened without comment, and after she had stopped there was another silence.

'So, what about these two friends?' He leaned forward. 'You've risked so much for them, not only yourselves but me, and Ray, as well. Why does it mean so much to you?'

How was she ever going to explain her relationship to Hank and Eric? Complicated didn't even begin to cover it! But she looked up at him.

'I care about them,' she said quietly. 'They are my friends.'

'That's all?'

'Yes. That's all.'

But saying the words didn't feel quite right. She thought it was true, she knew it was true, so why did it feel like she was telling him a lie?

There were footsteps behind them and the both turned, weapons at the ready. Joseph swept the Sword round in a graceful arc, and held it as steady as a rock. It surprised her that he knew what to do, and that it came so naturally to him.

The footsteps suddenly stopped and Sheila appeared out from under the Cloak.

'Sorry to interrupt,' she said. 'You've been ages and we were worried.'

'Everything is ok,' said Diana, taking Joseph's arm.

'We'll have to go,' the Thief continued. 'Ray's getting anxious. He kept going on and on about open ground and sitting targets. And if I didn't know better, I would say that he was enjoying himself!'

There was a moment of calm, as Diana and Sheila smiled at the joke. Then someone else spoke.

'He was right to be worried,' said a familiar voice behind them.

Diana whipped round as did Sheila at the same time, and the Acrobat heard her friend's gasp of astonishment.

Though she knew she should have been wondering how they had managed to creep up on them, all the sensible questions and thoughts were swept away.

There were two young men each seated on horseback, looking down regally at the three of them. The Acrobat recognised them, in spite of their different clothes and hairstyles. And when Diana looked up into their faces and her heart missed a beat.

Eric and Hank were right in front of her.


	4. Smile Time

Chapter 4

"Smile Time"

Diana couldn't speak. She heard Sheila gasp in shock beside her, and the Thief was so surprised that she made no attempt to use her Cloak to vanish.

The two boys looked so similar to how the Acrobat remembered them; but so different to what she had expected.

Of the two, Eric caught her attention first. His hair was still cut short, and his superior expression was achingly familiar, all the way down to the smug curve of his top lip. He also still dressed in armour, just as she had somehow expected, but it wasn't the yellow breastplate and blue mail of the Cavalier. It was the colour of tarnished silver but it sparkled in the light when he moved. He had a black fur cape thrown round his shoulders, and black gauntlets; and in his right hand was a long, black Spear.

But Hank was very different, and Diana could hardly believe it was the same person. Only the piercing, blue eyes that gazed at her were the same as they always had been. His blonde hair was long enough to tie back, and he wore armour similar to Eric's, but brighter and with the emblem of a dragon's head embossed on the front. His cape was blue, the colour of early evening, as were his gloves. He carried no weapon that Diana could see.

Hank spurred his horse forward a few steps, so he was looking right down at Diana and the two others.

'So you are the Acrobat?' he said, a contemptuous and unfamiliar tone to his voice. 'You are Zandora's new Pupils?'

Diana lifted her head up, and glared at him. She looked him straight in the eye, knowing deep down who he was. She was here to help him, and help Eric. That was all that mattered.

'Yes, I am the Acrobat,' she said, holding her Javelin firmly in her hand. 'And who are you?'

Hank slid smoothly off the horse to the ground and stared back at her. There was no recognition at all in his eyes, and Diana was sure that she heard a quiet cry from Sheila.

'You don't know who I am?' Hank asked in amazement. 'You haven't heard of me?'

From behind him, Eric barked a laugh.

'If beautiful women do not know your name, then it seems your reputation isn't what it used to be, brother,' he said.

_Brother!_ thought Diana, trying not to stare. _Brother…?_

She didn't dare look round to see what Sheila thought of this development. She could guess!

Hank smiled at her, and Diana felt compelled to smile back. It was a smile she recognised.

'You haven't been here very long, have you?'

'We've just arrived,' she replied.

'I told you so,' said Eric. 'That damned old Witch must have just left! We've missed her again!'

Hank ignored his "brother" and continued to stare at Diana.

'Perhaps,' he said smoothly, 'perhaps you should just give us your weapons so we can be on our way.'

She wanted to.

Though every part of her knew that it was a tremendously bad idea, she still wanted to. Seeing him like that, knowing who he was, she wanted to help him in any way that…

'Leave her alone!' growled Joseph. There was the hiss of a Sword as it cut through the air.

Hank regarded the other boy with a cold contempt.

'Paladin?' he said at last, looking at Joseph's clothes. 'Another Paladin with the Sword! Zandora really doesn't have any… imagination!' As Hank said the last word, he turned back to Diana and gave a smile, a different sort of smile this time. She knew he wasn't looking at her, but at her clothes (or lack of them) and she shivered. Hank had never looked at her quite like _that_ before.

'I said leave her alone!'

As Joseph stepped up to her side, Hank took a step back, the cold expression back on his face.

'Enough!' said Eric sharply. 'This is not why we are here!' He levelled his Spear at the three of them. 'We are here for you.'

'No,' Diana replied instantly. 'You're not getting us, or our weapons!'

Eric looked surprised, and confused.

'Really, Acrobat?' he asked calmly. 'What make you think that?'

'You're not taking our weapons!' she said again.

'Oh? We're not?' He was still calm, but there was an edge of something else in his tone; anger perhaps, or maybe just confusion, she couldn't tell. That was strange, she was used to being able to understand Eric. It was disconcerting to know that he had the advantage. That had never happened to her before!

'No! you're not!' she said.

'Then… perhaps we would have to kill you.'

Though he spoke with a light tone, Diana had the unpleasant feeling that he actually meant it. Her discomfort only lasted a moment, as the tension was broken by a laugh from Hank.

'I think she believes, you, Eric!' he said, still laughing. 'You have such a way with women!'

Diana looked from one to the other. _They had the same names! That son-of-a-bitch Venger had given them the same names!_

'Hank!' she said suddenly.

'Oh, so you do know! How gratifying!' Hank turned to smirk at Eric, but the other boy wasn't looking at him. There was the sound of footsteps from close by, and a small group of about ten Orc soldiers appeared.

'Well?' demanded Eric. 'Where are they? Where are the others?'

'Other Young Ones gone,' said the Captain ruefully. 'Magician use Hat and all gone.'

For a moment, an ugly look of black anger flitted over Eric's face, but it was so fleeting that Diana almost missed it.

'But you got Tang, didn't you?' he said, his voice lowering to a growl. 'Tell me that you found Tang!'

'Baby Dragon left with Young Ones,' said the Orc. 'Tang gone!'

He gazed levelly at the Orc Captain, and said:

'_You_ will be the one to convey this news to our Father.' The Orc shuddered and looked around at its fellows. Eric looked round to the three friends, his anger muted for the moment.

'Well, Acrobat, Paladin and Thief,' he said. 'You will still come with us.'

Diana looked round at the Orcs. If they were to fight just the Orcs, they would probably win; she had face these kind of odds before and she was sure Joseph would be able to hold his ground.

But what about Eric and Hank? Eric had the Spear, but Hank seemed unarmed. And they were so supremely confident as well, as if they knew they could win anyway, regardless of the weapons or anything else. There was no guarantee in this strange new Realm that everything would go right; she didn't even have a riddle to help her.

But more importantly than that, this was their chance.

They had to find Eric and Hank, and they had found them. Now her two missing friends had been found, they had to stay close.

This was a golden opportunity to help them. All they had to do was find a way to get everyone back to the Crystal and get through it, safely back to their own world.

Diana risked a quick glance round at the Thief. She gave a small nod. Now they just had to…

'What if we don't want to,' said Joseph suddenly, making his Sword look more obvious. 'What if we would rather go our own way!'

Eric shook his head. His expression was blank as he spoke.

'You are new to this world, so I will forget your insolence this time. But you will come with us. Our Father wishes that you accompany us.'

Diana laid her hand on Joseph's arm.

'We should go,' she murmured, trying to give him a Significant Look so he would understand. 'We should go with Hank and Eric.'

'Them?' he said incredulously, realisation dawning on him. 'These are the ones you…'

Joseph looked stunned, and Diana took advantage of his silence.

'We will come with you,' she said. 'But we are keeping our weapons!'

Eric paused for a moment, then nodded.

'Very well, if you insist. But my brother and I are more than capable of acting as your escort, without your intervention!'

Diana regarded him in stunned silence.

'Escort?'

'Yes. Escort. To the Castle of our Father.'

'Escort? We're not prisoners, then?'

At that statement, Eric actually looked offended! An offended Eric was not something she had seen very often at all! Maybe even ever!

'Well,' she said, quickly moving on, 'what about our friends?'

'What, indeed,' said Eric. 'But there is nothing we can do to help them now.'

'What?' That wasn't the answer the Acrobat had expected.

'We must hope that they find shelter and safety. And we must hope they find it quickly, too.'

'What?' asked Sheila, speaking for the first time. 'What do you mean?'

'This world is an extremely dangerous place,' said Eric. 'Alone, without escort, your friends will soon discover this fact.'

'But Bobby!' said Sheila in a sudden panic. 'I've got to find him!'

'He'll be safe with Presto and Ray,' said Diana quickly, trying to keep her voice low so as not to let Hank or Eric hear.

'But…'

'He'll be ok.'

Sheila didn't look convinced and was about to say something when she looked back to Hank. After a moment of staring at him, she gave a terse nod.

Hank mounted his horse, and the group started to slowly move off, Hank in the lead, and Eric at the rear.

Diana stayed close to Sheila and Joseph, trying to get the chance to talk in relative privacy. But there were too many Orcs. And Eric was close by.

'Do you think Bobby will be ok?' asked Sheila. She still sounded very worried. But not why had started this, there wasn't much of a way they could back out, even if they had really wanted to.

'Presto and Ray will make sure of it,' said Diana. 'They know what they're doing. They'll keep him safe.'

'That's not what I'm worried about,' admitted Sheila.

Diana smiled.

'And they'll keep him out of trouble too,' she said.

Joseph gave her a quick frown.

'Well, I hope _you_ know what _you're_ doing,' he whispered to her. 'This seems more like a trap to me.'

'It will be ok,' she whispered back. 'It will be ok.'

The path ahead of them sudden widened out as they crossed the crest of the hill. Before them was a valley of grey stone that looked as though it had been gouged out of the surrounding landscape by a giant hand that had scattered the stones into the air. Right in the centre of the valley, about five miles away was a thick, black Castle surrounded by a moat, though whether is was in fact a moat of water and not tar, as it looked like from far away, Diana couldn't be sure.

The Castle itself was more like a fortress of nightmares with steep spires and spikes than the usual fairytale-style castles that they had been used to in the Realm. There were rows of window along the side of it, as well as a truly huge set of metal double doors, as the entrance to the castle at the other side of a narrow bridge across the black waters.

Even Venger's Prison of Agony look positively friendly compared to this. Diana drew a shapr breath.

'This is our home,' announce Eric proudly. 'This is the Fortress of Venger.'

'And what were you saying…?' the Paladin whispered to her.

'It will be ok…' she repeated. 'It will be ok.'

_I hope._


	5. Round and Round, With Nowhere To Go

Chapter 5

"Round and Round, With Nowhere To Go."

'Well, now we're here, what are we going to do?' Ray asked.

The Magician turned to look at the Sage as he stared glumly out of the cave at the mist-covered lands before them. He seemed relaxed enough even after everything that had happened in such a short time, he had adjusted well. The Staff was clasped in his hand but seemingly forgotten for the moment.

The cave itself was fairly shallow and smelt of dead leaves, and wasn't much of a place to take refuge for any length of time. The three of them (and the baby Dragon) were cold and wet and miserable, they had no idea where they were, or what they were going to do next. Inside, Presto had a totally unfamiliar feeling of panic; he didn't usually feel _this_ sort of panic in the Realm, but this time was different. No Hank. No Dungeonmaster. No riddles. It seemed like there was nothing to help him.

'What are we going to do?' Ray repeated.

'I don't know,' Presto said with a heavy sigh.

'Well, I don't wanna be rude y'know,' the Sage said, turning round to look at Presto with an inquisitive look on his face. 'But you're the ones that have done this before.'

'It's not exactly the same,' said Presto. There was a cold sinking feeling through him; _no, it wasn't really the same at all._

Behind him, deeper in the cave Bobby sat, glaring at the wall in front of them, tapping his Club on the ground in a restless and very aggressive kind of way. Presto didn't like the look of calm on the young boys face either. That was surely just for show! And when Bobby decided to drop the act, everyone should run for cover!

Further back was the small Bronze Dragon that seemed to have adopted them. It was curled up like a cat next to the wall and appeared to be asleep. But it had an odd kind of look about it, maybe it wasn't even a look, maybe it was something that Presto could just sense. Every time he looked at it, he had the urge to check that nothing had suddenly appeared behind them and was about to attack. He didn't usually feel so jumpy, but that little creature was gonna cause them Trouble. Definitely. Without a single doubt!

But it got worse.

Now, apart from the fact that Hank and Eric were still missing, he had managed to loose both the girls, and Joseph as well.

The gang of Orcs had appeared out of nowhere, and his spell had hardly been his best ever, but it was enough to get them away from danger, for the moment, at least.

But how that was going to help, he didn't know.

He closed his eyes and put his head in his hands.

'Hey, Presto,' said Ray gently. 'It's ok. We'll think of something. Don't worry.'

'Yeah… sure…' said Presto, not bothering to look up. 'It's not as if the answer is going to fall out of the sky, is it?'

'Isn't it?' replied Ray instantly, and Presto opened his eyes to look at the Sage. 'You know this place better than I do, but it seems to be that just about anything can happen!'

'You've got that right,' muttered Bobby for the back of the cave. Presto didn't like the tone of the young boy's voice. But Ray was right. Anything could happen, they just had to figure out what was going on.

They were silent for a moment. The Dragon snuffled in its sleep and gave a big yawn, without a care in the world. Presto sighed. It must be nice to feel secure in a crazy world like this. He had almost forgotten how it felt, even though he had spent time back at home, in his nice little house with his Mom and Dad. He sighed.

'What is that thing?' asked Ray at last, pointing at the sleeping Dragon.

He had used his right hand, the hand with the Staff in it, and the Staff suddenly began to glow.

'Wow!' muttered the Sage, looking down at the bright Staff. Then he shook his head, frowning as if presented with a puzzle.

'Are you ok?' asked Presto. 'What's happening?'

Ray looked up at him, still confused.

'The Dragon. He's called Tang,' Ray said. 'He's a baby Bronze Dragon and Venger wants him.'

Presto looked at Ray in astonishment.

'How do you know that?' he asked.

'I don't know, I just "know", y'know! I think the Staff just told me!'

'Well, I suppose you are a Sage,' Presto said thoughtfully, looking at the Staff. 'Maybe it tells you things, information, insight into other things.'

'Maybe it works like an Eight Ball,' said Ray with a grin. He held up the Staff again and tapped the crystal with a fingernail and gave it a little shake. 'You know, "Sorry, ask again later"!'

'Ray, I don't think that it works quite like…' Presto could tell the Sage wasn't listening, but even so, he was unprepared for the question Ray came up with.

Ray suddenly pointed the Staff directly at Presto and asked:

'Is Presto telling the truth about the other Realm?'

The Magician didn't even have a chance to react. There was a frightening surge of magical power, Presto could feel it all the way through to his bones. The gemstone at the tip of the staff pulsed with light and suddenly the Staff was thrown across the room, sending Ray flying in the opposite direction.

Bobby and Presto were by his side in a moment.

'I hope that was a _yes_,' said Bobby.

Ray smiled weakly at them.

'That was a "stop asking stupid questions, of could he damn well is!"!' He stood up, rubbing his hand gently. 'I feel terrible!'

There was a squeak from beside his knee, and Presto looked down to see Tang there, Ray's Staff in his mouth, like a puppy fetching his master's slippers.

'Hello there, Tang,' said Ray with a smile. He knelt down and reached out his hand. The Bronze Dragon sniffed at it and then allowed the Sage to pet his head and take the Staff back from out of his mouth.

'I suppose we could ask how we are going to find Eric and Hank and get ourselves back home!' suggested Bobby.

'I don't think that is a good idea,' said Ray. 'That doesn't sound like the sort of question we should be asking it!'

'What are we gonna do, then?' snapped Bobby. 'I've gotta go and find my sister!'

Deafening alarm bells started ringing in Presto's head. He had to do something. Right now! A rising sense of panic stared in Presto's chest.

_What were they going to do?_

From the vantage point of the cave, they could see right down the valley. In the centre of the crater was a huge, black, nasty-looking Castle. Only Venger could have come up with something like that. So if that was Venger's Castle, then it was likely that Hank and Eric were there too, or somewhere close by.

And also, if Diana, Sheila and Joseph _hadn't_ managed to escape the Orcs, then they would probably have been taken there too.

Ray was looking at him, waiting for some sort of response, waiting for something… Presto's heart dropped about four feet. Ray was waiting for him to take the lead!

_Oh, God! He had to be the leader!!_

He didn't know what he was doing! He didn't have all the answers! He didn't… he couldn't…

Presto took a deep breath.

Panicking wasn't going to help. He had to get a grip and calm down. After everything that had happened; Venger, Hank and Eric, the girls, the Orcs, there was only one real choice.

'I think that Castle is our next destination,' he said. And he waited for the howls of disapproval.

But none came.

Presto waited in stunned silence for a few extra seconds, just in case they were kidding him, but neither of the others said anything to contradict his suggestion. In fact, Ray was nodding.

'That's seemed like a good idea,' said Ray. He paused and thought about what he'd said. 'Well, obviously walking into the most terrifying, heavily guarded place was can see isn't in itself a good plan, but I think you're right, anyway!'

Bobby was still silent, and Presto knew the Barbarian well enough to know that he would make any disagreement with the leader known!

Suddenly, Tang sat bolt upright, his little, greenish-brown ears twitching. Before Presto could speak, Tang turned round and vanished towards the back of the cave. He stood very still, and seemed to merge into the background so he was very well hidden.

Ray and Presto looked at each other.

'I don't think that's a good sign!' murmured Presto. Ray nodded.

There was the rustle of leaves from close beside them and immediately Bobby and Presto were on alert, crouching near the front of the cave. Ray followed their example, even though he was clearly uncertain about what good his Staff would do against an enemy.

They waited.

There was silence for another minute or so, but then there was another rustling, closer this time.

Presto frowned, thinking about where they were. This cave wasn't much shelter for them, but maybe it was home to something else. True, it didn't smell like an animal's home, it had no signs that life had ever lived there, but perhaps some sort of predator used it as a place to rest overnight.

His hand tightened around the Hat. If it was something nasty he was probably going to have to deal with it; or at least distract it for long enough until Bobby used the Club. At that moment he missed Hank and Eric much more than he ever thought possible.

Eric was an unbelievable pain in the ass, but he had slowly become good at being the Shield-man, and he could be relied upon to protect them when they needed it.

Hank was their leader, he was always out there, in front, knowing what to do and helping them all through. And Presto know that the Ranger wouldn't be cowering on the ground just now. He wouldn't be hiding in a cave with no escape route!

The noise was very close, and Presto held his breath. Beside him, Bobby was sitting next to him, his Club in his hands, tense and ready for an attack.

Just a few metres down from the entrance of the cave, the branches of some of the nearby bushes suddenly swayed and were pushed apart.

A small, slender figure emerged, crawling out of the plant and into the fading sunlight of early evening.

And Presto's heart virtually stopped.

Of all the things he had expected to see, she wasn't one of them… Varla! _Varla_!

Seeing her so unexpectedly left him incapable of doing anything but staring. Bobby must have recognised her too, but he didn't move when he saw her. Ray again followed their lead.

Presto could only stare, open mouthed at the vision before him. It was like he hadn't seen her in years.

She looked different; her hair was much shorter, cut a little like Sheila's and it seemed to be lighter in colour, as if she had been out in the sun for too long. The flawless, pale skin on her face was darker, tanned by the sun. She was dressed in close-fitting dark clothes that helped her blend in to the surrounding countryside and had a tight belt around her slim waist. She looked warily around, like a cat looking for its prey.

But despite all the minor differences and the changes his heart ached at the sight of her.

He wanted more than anything else to reach out to her and sweep her up into his arms again. He wanted to hold her close and never let her go. Since that last day they had been together, he had missed her more than he could ever express in words.

'Varla!' he whispered. At least, he had thought it was a whisper. He had thought he wouldn't be heard. But the girl before them whipped round fiercely at them, looking directly at Presto. She moved like lightning, her hand moving to her side to pull out a slender, razor-like knife that Presto hadn't noticed before.

She was heading straight for him!

* * *


	6. King of the Castle

Chapter 6

"King of the Castle"

It was difficult for Diana to quite believe this was happening. She was walking to the very gates of Venger's Castle, accompanied by twisted versions of Hank and Eric; with her handsome, Aryan, Paladin boyfriend (and Sheila) accompanying her.

And she wasn't trying to escape. She must be insane! Completely, totally and utterly insane!

She didn't know how the other two were feeling, but she was pretty sure it was similar.

The Paladin walked beside Diana, flanking her protectively from the rest of the Orcs, but they mostly contented themselves with marching along, grumbling about the walk and the weather under their breathes when they thought no one could hear them.

On the Acrobat's other side, Sheila was walking in silence, occasionally casting charged looks towards Hank. He had noticed as he had looked back at her and smiled once. Eric was in the lead, and he hadn't looked round at all. He held his head up proudly and Diana found it difficult to take her eyes off him. He was so different, and so much the same, seeing him like this made her feel… strange. She couldn't explain it any better than that.

The huge, ugly Castle loomed close now, they were only a few minutes away. Diana couldn't help suppressing a shudder.

'Are you certain this is a good idea,' Joseph whispered to her. 'Once we're in there, I don't think we're ever going to get out!'

Diana nodded, she understood the tremendous risk they were taking, but it seemed like the only way. Now they had found Eric and Hank, they had to stay close. Getting them back through the Kronos Crystal was the only thing that mattered; she had to remember that.

They had walked quickly; far too quickly for Diana's liking and they had arrived at that monstrous Castle much faster than she was comfortable with!

Close up, the Castle looked even less welcoming than from far away. There was a great moat of black, syrupy water round the base, and a drawbridge and a portcullis, as well as a massive set of double-barred gates.

Diana shivered as the group approached, wondering why so much fortification was needed. Surely Venger was strong enough to protect his own Castle!

They crossed the drawbridge, the Acrobat noticed that the huge, heavy gates were guarded by armoured Orcs and Trolls; and that all of those creatures looked with awed respect at the two young men who led the party forward.

And that was the strangest thing of all; the Orcs obeyed Hank and Eric's commands without question and treated them as their superiors at all times.

Her skin began to crawl at the thought of what must have happened to her two friends, growing up in this terrible place. Questions forced themselves to the front of her mind, the wrong questions for the predicament she found herself in: what had happened to her two lost friends, how had they survived? How had they been changed? How was she ever going to help them get back home?

She reached out to Joseph, her hand finding his and tightening around it, and drawing strength from his touch. Then, as they walked forward, the fear in her chest suddenly increased. _What were they going to find inside?_

She walked forward in silence, aware of the thud of their footsteps across the bridge. They were only a few feet away from the gates, and Diana looked round at Hank and Eric, forcing herself to remember why she was here. She didn't hesitate as she stepped over the threshold.

As the portcullis came down behind them, and the drawbridge rose, Eric dismounted and then he and Hank talked very quietly to one another. Some of the Orcs were sent scuttling off into the Castle. Hank left as well, then Eric approached Diana and her friends.

'You will come with me,' he said.

'Where are we going?' she asked. 'The dungeons.'

Eric gave a little smile and shook his head.

'No, you will come with us to the Great Hall. Our Father will be anxious to meet you once he learns of your arrival.'

'Venger?'

At the name, Eric seemed to flinch.

'You will not address him by that name,' he said sternly. 'He is Lord Venger. Do not forget that, as he is less forgiving of mistakes than I!'

Diana nodded, by beside her Joseph seemed to be less agreeable, but he didn't voice any opinions on the matter in front of Eric. Sheila nodded as well, but didn't seem to have been listening, she kept glancing to the door through which Hank had left.

'Very well,' Eric said. 'You will come with me!'

He turned and led them forward, and Diana, Sheila and Joseph all followed him, possibly more out of curiosity than obedience.

They walked through dark, austere hallways, plainly decorated and lit only by torches, and then climbed two sets of wide stairs before arriving at a set of huge double doors.

Eric stopped. He seemed to be nervous.

Diana, Sheila and Joseph exchanged glances. This was it!

Eric paused for a moment more, then knocked twice, paused, and pushed the doors open, letting a rush of cold air out.

It was a long room, narrow and high; and brightly lit by two double rows of flaming torches. Down each side were rows of blue-white statues, carved in what looked like ice.

At the other end from the door there was a raised step, and an intricate, white throne that rose up out of the floor like an iceberg from the black floor.

And on the white throne was the unmistakable figure of Venger.

But Diana stared at him. Something wasn't quite right. She was too far away to be sure, but there was definitely something…

Eric walked proudly up to the far end, with the other three in tow. Diana shivered, partly from the cold, and partly from nervousness.

They drew closer and closer.

The man on the throne was looking down to the floor as they approached, and only when Eric stopped and went down on one knee did he raise his head.

Diana stared. Though she knew it was a bad idea and he would undoubtedly consider it rude, she just couldn't help herself.

The man was certainly Venger; the eyes, the face, the demeanour was exactly the same. He even wore long robes of the same colour and style. But there were no full wings on his back, only the broken remains that protruded up from his shoulders and spread only a foot before ending in ragged, truncated stumps.

But more shockingly than that there was no single horn, there was no horn at all; Venger's head was uncovered and completely hairless, but the pale skin was not smooth, it was wrinkled and disfigured like the scar of an old burn.

Lord Venger stared back at her for a long moment, regarding her impudence with a calmness that Diana didn't like. Eventually, she looked away before he did.

'Greetings, my young guests,' said Venger.

The voice! The voice came as the greatest surprise. The voice she had known so well was gone too. Left in its place was a rasping whisper that carried none of the fear and power that Venger had in the Other Realm. Instead, Diana felt a pang of unexpected sorrow.

Venger was waiting for a response, and since Diana couldn't speak and Sheila seemed to be stuck dumb for the moment as well, Joseph decided to reply. Diana saw him bow slightly, and before she could say anything, the Paladin spoke.

'Greetings, Lord Venger.'

Venger looked surprised.

'At least this time, Zandora has chosen Young Ones with manners,' he said calmly. 'You are the Paladin, are you not?'

'Yes. Lord Venger.' This time, the _Lord Venger_ sounded slightly more like an afterthought, and Venger leaned forward on his throne to glare at Joseph. It seemed to pain him to move, and he sat at an awkward angle. Diana wondered for a moment what other injuries he had, and how they had happened.

Then his eyes turned to her, and she suppressed another shiver. Those deep, red eyes seemed to bore under her skin and straight into her heart; they seemed so much more human than she remembered.

'And you are the Acrobat?'

Diana nodded, but didn't quite trust herself to speak.

'The Acrobat,' repeated Venger quietly. 'I have often wondered if there would one day be an Acrobat. And a Thief as well.'

His eyes flicked to Sheila and Diana noticed her friend take a tiny step back. Then Venger looked back to Joseph.

'There are others from your world here.' It was not a question, and it was said with such finality and conviction that Diana wasn't surprised at Joseph's answer.

'Yes, Lord Venger.'

'Their titles?'

Joseph hesitated for just a moment before replying.

'Sage, Barbarian, Magician.'

Diana watched Venger's expression carefully, but he betrayed no emotion, only nodded slowly, as if that had been something he had expected. The answers seemed to satisfy the Arch-Mage, and he finally looked down to Eric.

Eric, still down on one knee did not rise or look up as his Master had spoken. He simply waited. Venger stared at him, and Diana grew more uncomfortable. She didn't like the way the silence stretched out, or the way Venger sat and stared at the back of Eric's head.

'Stand!' said Venger at last, and Eric pushed himself up off his knee to face the Arch-Mage. Then Venger gave a warm, indulgent smile that looked completely out of place on his face. 'You have done well, Cavalier!'

Diana gasped; she just couldn't help it. The shock of hearing his title, said like that, with such affection from the man that was their enemy, had taken her by surprise. If Venger noticed, he made no comment.

'While you have not brought me the Dragon, at least you have found some Zandora's newest pupils.' His voice grew more stern. 'But you have not fulfilled your errand, Cavalier. And you know the punishment for failure.'

Eric nodded, ever so slowly. Diana couldn't see the expression on his face, but she could imagine it!

Venger raised his hand, and it glowed with white light. As it grew brighter, Eric hunched forward, and gave a small cry of pain.

'See that it does not happen again, Cavalier!' the Arch-Mage said, as the light died away.

Eric bowed, but didn't speak. He took a step back, away from the throne, and Diana could see his face. There was no expression there at all, not anger or pain or fear. Nothing at all.

As they stood, there was the noise of quick footsteps from the behind the throne. Eric looked up hopefully, and after a moment, Hank appeared.

He had changed his clothes and had replaced the armour with a plain, blue tunic. He smiled at Eric as he entered, and gave a low, reverend bow to the Arch-Mage. Diana watched him carefully, and she was sure he gave the Thief a tiny wink as he looked round at them.

'Ranger!' said Venger, sounding pleased.

Diana had braced herself for this, ever since she had heard him use Eric's title, she had known that Hank would probably be called Ranger. But she was not prepared for the happy way Venger said it; the tone was even bordering on joyful!

She looked round at Sheila, seeing the shock and confusion she felt mirrored on her friend's face.

'Pupils of Zandora!' said Venger. 'You are to be my guests in this Castle.' That didn't sound very promising. Joseph shot her an angry glance that she tried to ignore. 'You may leave if it is your wish to do so, but first you should understand what dangers there are in this Realm.'

The Arch-Mage pushed himself up off his throne very, very slowly, and Diana could see that Eric was struggling to restrain himself from rushing forward to help. Once Venger stood tall, it was clear to see that part of his left side was twisted and deformed, and that he had great difficultly in standing.

'Eric! Hank!' he said. _Venger said their names!_ He had used their real names, not their titles! She was so preoccupied with that fact that she almost missed what else Venger had to say. 'You will escort the Acrobat and the Thief to their rooms. You will afford them every courtesy. Their safety within these walls in entirely in your hands.'

The two boys both bowed low to the Arch-Mage, then Hank turned to Sheila and Eric turned to Diana. But the Acrobat was more worried about Joseph. The Arch-Mage was looking at the Paladin carefully.

'And what about me, Lord Venger?' Joseph asked, raising his head to look Venger in the eye.

Amazingly, Venger smiled.

'Approach!'

Diana suddenly felt a light pressure on her arm and she turned round with a jump. It was Eric, standing so very close to her. Her breath caught in her throat as she looked at him, so very different, and so very much the same.

'This way, Acrobat,' he said.

Diana managed a very brief glance back, to see Joseph and Venger face each other on the step in silence.

She wanted to stay, she wanted to find out what was going to happen to Joseph, but she didn't dare disobey. This was, after all, the chance they had been waiting for. Sheila was already heading for the door, Hank hovering at her elbow.

With as much of a smile as she could manage, Diana nodded and followed Hank and Sheila out of the door, Eric by her side.

* * *


	7. It’s Complicated

Chapter 7

"It's Complicated"

That voice. He knew that voice!

He could hear her voice again. Such a beautiful voice. She was whispering his name in his ear. _Magician, Magician, wake up, wake up… _but that wasn't his name, was it.. she shouldn't be calling him that?

_Varla_!

He opened his eyes abruptly, to see Varla kneeling by his side, looking warily at him. The knife was glinting in the light from the outside of the cave, and still pointing at him. He touched his forehead gently. His head ached and he was sure there was going to be a big bruise on his temple. What had happened?

Beside her, kneeling at his side were Bobby and Ray, with the baby Dragon off in one corner. The Sage was sitting, rubbing his jaw and looking uncomfortable, and the Barbarian was just frowning like a thunderstorm. This didn't look good!

'W-what happened?' asked Presto. He didn't really remember anything after seeing Varla run towards him.

'We lost,' said Ray sheepishly. 'Our first fight and I get beaten up by a girl! That's just embarrassing!'

'We lost?' replied Presto slowly. He looked at Varla as she sat beside him, coiled like a snake ready to strike. Somehow, though he knew he should have been, he wasn't surprised.

'I sorta surrendered,' said Ray with a tiny, nervous glance at Bobby. 'Once she had knocked you over, I thought it would be better to try and talk to her. Y'know, be the voice of reason! Took a while though.'

Bobby gave the sage a baleful glare, and clearly thought that he would have been more than capable of taking on this girl. But Presto breathed a sigh of relief and nodded.

'Thanks, Ray.'

'Don't mention it! Ever again. I have a reputation!'

Presto nodded once more, and stifled a smile. Ray's bruised ego amused him more than he thought it would. It seemed so incongruous for a Sage!

Varla had been watching this exchange with interest, but now Presto turned to look at her, he found his heart suddenly thudding. There was no recognition in her eyes, as if everything that they had experienced together had just bee a dream. _His_ dream.

'You are Zandora's Pupils?' she said.

'Yes,' replied Presto, after a moments hesitation. He wasn't that sure that they could all be called pupils of Zandora, but now was probably not a good time to start arguing about the specifics!

'I knew it,' hissed Varla. 'That old witch is still after me!'

'What?' Presto said. Why did this all have to be so confusing, especially when he had a sore head.

'She sent you to stop me, didn't she?' asked Varla. 'I should have known she would try this!'

'No!' said Presto. 'No, we're not here to…'

Varla wasn't listening.

'It's my life, and it's my duty!' Varla said angrily. 'I have to do it! I must!'

She looked up directly into Presto's eyes.

The surge of magic that he sensed took him completely by surprise. Whatever the differences in the Realm, and everything else, this was still _Varla_! He knew her; he loved her more than anything else.

'Zandora didn't tell us anything,' said Ray. 'Well, not about you, anyway! We seem to be sorta just stuck in this place.'

Presto hardly heard him speak. He was too busy staring at Varla. Something was wrong… really really _really_ wrong here! This was Varla like he had never imagined, so full of hate and anger and self-righteousness.

'What happened?' he said, his voice filled with the same dread that was suffocating his heart. Everyone fell silent and look at him. 'Tell me. Who are you? What are you going to do?'

Varla tilted her head up proudly.

'I am an Assassin,' she said. 'And I'm going to kill Venger's Sons!'

Presto looked at her in horror, unable to believe that she was capable of such an act of violence. Varla saw the look and a vicious scowl disfigured her face.

'You do not know what he did! My parents, and my village were wiped out by Venger's army. I was the only one to survive.'

Presto was silent for a moment, in his mind thinking about Jerle and Marinda, and their pain at the loss of their daughter, and their kindness. Bu that didn't change the fact that killing in revenge was wrong!

'I'm sorry about your parents,' he said at last. 'They were good, kind people.'

Varla bowed her head.

'I am sworn to vengeance,' she said, her proud voice never shaking. 'Venger must suffer as I have suffered. Nothing less than the loss of his two Beloved Sons will satisfy me!'

Presto's heart, already sinking slowly as Varla had spoken, dropped sharply. He didn't even have to ask, he just knew, it was obvious!

_Two Beloved Sons_: Venger's Sons were Hank and Eric. That was the only explanation.

Ray noticed the change in his expression.

'Presto. Are you alright? You've gone white. Presto?'

He had to be sure. He could hardly form the words, but he had to be sure.

'V-Venger's Sons. W-what are their names?'

Varla's expression changed to one of anger, an expression that didn't seem to fit properly on her beautiful face.

'Together they are named the Dark Brothers, but their given names are Hank and Eric.'

His fears confirmed, Presto could only say a quiet "oh" in reply. Bobby's expression changed to a look of confusion. But he didn't interrupt, for which Presto was extremely grateful.

'Do you have a grievance with the Brethren as well?' she asked.

'It's not really a grievance,' said Presto slowly. 'Hank and Eric are… are… um…'

What was he going to say? How was he going to explain? Varla waited patiently for an answer, and he knew he had to find something to tell her.

'My goal is to rid this Realm of Hank and Eric,' he said at long last, choosing his words very carefully and not looking at either of his two companions, for fear of what they might say. Varla nodded in agreement.

'That is what they deserve! Once the Realm is rid of the Brothers, I shall have my revenge and be at peace.'

He didn't like the way she said that! He knew this was dangerous territory, and he was playing a very dangerous game by trying to deceive her like this. And he hated it!! He didn't want to do this, he wanted to tell her the truth.

Varla looked at him, and he suddenly realised he was staring at her.

'The way you look at me, Magician,' she said softly. 'You are not like the others, and you are strong in Magic, I can sense it. Do you know me?'

She was so forthright, so confident, with steel just under the surface. He looked at her, seeing the face of the girl he loved so much, knowing that though she looked the same, she was a different person thanks to the death of her parents and her village. Then he nodded.

'I do know you,' he said. 'You're an Illusionist,'

Varla's eyes grew wide in surprise.

'How do you know this?'

This was his chance! He could explain… but…

But now it came down to the moment, he couldn't find the right words to start the explanation. Was she going to think that he was mad? Or that he was just making fun of her? The knife was still in her hand, and she clearly had much faster reactions than he did! If this went wrong, he wasn't going to get another opportunity!

'Magician?' she said. 'Explain!'

He had gotten himself into this! He was going to have to get himself out.

Taking a deep breath, Presto just started talking, not worrying about order or trying to convince anyone of anything.

'To explain, I'm going to have to tell you a very long story,' he said. 'A true story, but a very confusing one…'

He let himself talk; about arriving in the Realm, the first time round; about Hank and Eric as Ranger and Cavalier; about the places they'd seen, and the people they'd met, Zandora, Rhamoud, Terri, Kosar; and the adventures they'd had trying to get home including rescuing Varla herself from Venger's Forbidden Tower.

Then he told them about how they had ended up here, again, in this strange Realm where everything was topsy-turvy, and how Dungeonmaster had used the very last of his powers and the Crystals of Kronos to send them through to this Realm to try to undo what had been done.

He spoke for well over an hour, and both Varla and Ray hung on his every word.

At last he ground to a halt, suddenly unsure, and worried that he had said too much. How could he be sure that he could trust her? But this was Varla, he had to trust her. He loved her… and besides, it was too late now!

The Illusionist looked stunned, that was the only way to describe it. Beside her, Ray was looking shell-shocked as well, hearing the stories for the first time. If he had any doubts, surely this would have dispelled them.

But Varla recovered first. She looked shrewdly at the Magician.

'You wish to rid the Realm of the Brothers? But you did not mean to kill them, but to take them back with you? To this _different_ Realm?'

He didn't like the scorn in her tone, but Presto nodded, unable to deny it. It was a relief to him to tell her the truth. He hated lying to her.

'That is wrong, Magician,' she said, her voice filling with fear. 'Those two are evil, as is their Father! No change in Realm will undo that.'

'No,' said Presto firmly. '_You're wrong_. They're not like that! Not in our Realm! In my Realm, Hank and Eric aren't evil, they're good. And they're my friends. I have to help!'

'Taking them back through a portal will not change their natures!'

'She's right, you know, Presto,' chipped in Ray. 'Taking them back through isn't gonna change anything.'

'We're not going through just any portal,' said Presto. 'After we find Hank and Eric…'

'And Sheila,' added Bobby suddenly.

'And Joseph. And Diana,' said Ray.

'Yes!' snapped Presto, suddenly feeling completely out of his depth. 'After we find Hank and Eric, and Sheila, and Diana and Joseph, we have to find the Crystal of Kronus and go back through.'

Ray looked at him doubtfully.

'And that's gonna help?'

Presto nodded.

'You're sure?'

Presto nodded again, but this time with less confidence.

'Seems to me you should be going back further and stopping Venger from taking the two boys in the first place!' said Ray. 'That's what I would do! That seems far more logical!'

'Dungeonmaster told us to get them back through, and that's what I'm going to do!' said Presto firmly.

The Sage gave him a doubtful look, but didn't say anything else. Varla looked doubtful as well.

'You will have very great difficultly in persuading the Brothers to go through the Crystal,' she said. 'And you'll have no less difficulty getting to it.'

'Don't tell me,' replied Presto with a heavy sigh. 'It's buried under a mountain, or it's been destroyed by an earthquake, or guarded by Tiamat!'

Confusion flitted across Varla's face, and she shook her head.

'No, it is in Venger's Castle,' she said, pointing to the great, black monstrosity in the valley. 'But only Venger may approach. It is forbidden for any others, even his Sons, upon pain of death!'

'That's not going to stop us!' said Presto, hoping he sounded a lot more confident than he felt.

'They will never disobey their Father's command. Not for any price! They are evil, and they are loyal only to Venger. If they are truly your friends, it would be better to kill them.'

Presto didn't have a good reply to that statement, and he looked hopefully round to Ray and Bobby. Ray shrugged, but Bobby didn't seem to be listening.

The Barbarian was looking wistfully out over the valley, staring at the horizon with a blank, almost glazed look. He almost seemed on the verge of tears. The Magician couldn't understand it, of course the boy was worried about his sister and getting Hank and Eric back safely, but that didn't seem quite enough to bring on this level of melancholy in the brash, young Barbarian.

There was a movement from close by as the small Bronze Dragon that had attacked itself to them scratched one of its ears.

And suddenly Presto understood what was wrong. It was so easy! So simple! So glaringly obvious! Why hadn't he seen it before!

He understood why Bobby had been to keen to get back to the Realm…_Uni_!

Of course Bobby would be missing his beloved pet, and he would be aching to find out what had happened to her in this new Realm, but he would rather have died than admit it, it seemed.

A smile almost began on Presto's lips when a much more unpleasant thought occurred to him. What if Uni wasn't here? What if Uni had been changed as well? Or what if Uni had been killed! There was no telling where she would be.

Presto glanced at the Illusionist, wondering if she knew anything about the Unicorn. But now wasn't a good time to ask! Varla looked back at him, and Presto shivered.

At that moment he wondered if telling her all of this had been such a good idea! Apart from the fact that this was Varla, there was no guarantee that she would give up her quest for vengeance, for him or for anything else.

They stared at each other for a moment. Out of the corner of his eye, Presto could see Ray looking worried.

At last, Varla spoke.

'I will help you,' said the Illusionist. 'But if you do not persuade the Brothers, I must kill them? Do you understand?'

Feeling sick again, Presto nodded. What else could he do? Even though this was Varla, he couldn't help feeling like he'd just made a deal with the Devil!

'Magician,' said Varla. 'I do have one other question.'

As the Illusionist paused, Presto braced himself. Was this never going to end?

'What is it?' he asked.

'Who is this _Tiamat_?'

* * *


	8. A Romantic Interlude

Chapter 8

"A Romantic Interlude"

To start, they didn't speak. The only sounds Diana could hear was the clear click of Eric's boots on the flagstones and her own shallow breaths.

He didn't look round at her, and Diana walked at his side in uneasy silence. It took her a few minutes to acknowledge the feeling inside her. She shivered slightly, and though she glanced round to look at Eric, the Cavalier didn't seem to notice. Though she hated to admit it, she was afraid.

It was an unpleasant sensation. She had never felt afraid in Eric's presence before. True, she had been annoyed, infuriated, aggravated, and highly amused in his presence, but never _afraid_. But as they walked through the dark and unfamiliar halls of Venger's Castle, Diana grew increasingly uncomfortable. All her instincts were telling her to run away from this terrible place as fast as she could.

But she didn't. Her sense of duty to her friends helped to stifle the urge to get away. No matter how different the man beside her was, he was still Eric underneath.

She took another, quick glance to the tall, inscrutable man that walked by her side. _Underneath…? Deep, deep, _deep_ down underneath_! she thought with a small smile. How could the man beside her be so different from the Eric she had known? What had happened to change him?

While she was used to him being arrogant and insufferable, she had never found him so cold before. When he looked at he, it felt like he looked right through her. There was no warmth or life in his expression, no humour and no fun. Whatever else the Eric she had known _had_ been, he had been fun.

And then there was his silence. They walked together, side by side, they arms close enough to touch occasionally, and he said nothing at all. At first, she thought that he was trying to play games with her, to get her to speak first (something which she was _not_ going to do!), but then she realised that he wasn't interested in speaking to her.

It was as if her presence there was inconsequential to him.

And that hurt.

That hurt Diana far more than if he had started swearing and shouting at her. His formal indifference was unbearable.

It wasn't until that moment that she realised how much Eric being _Eric_ had meant to her, and how much she liked his attention.

However much she would have liked to say something, she didn't. Instead, they walked on through the sombre hallways of the Castle, Diana's discomfort growing steadily and Eric seemed completely oblivious.

The silence between them grew to be unbearable and Diana racked her brains to think up something to say that would be appropriate. And it was harder than she thought it would be. But at last she couldn't stand it any more.

'My name's Diana,' she said at last. Maybe not he greatest opening line in the world, but she had to say something!

Eric didn't reply, or even break his stride. But at least he did glance round at her. He gave a very slight bow and that was all. Diana frowned. She was not going to give up that easily.

'Where are we going?' she asked after a few more steps.

'As my Father requested, I will show you to your rooms,' he said stiffly.

Diana gave a small smile. At least he replied this time! More than that, his answer also gave her an idea. Whether or not it would work was another thing altogether, but she didn't give herself much of a chance to think up an excuse.

Suddenly she stopped, right in the middle of the hallway, and crossed her arms. Eric came to a halt a moment later and looked at her with cold curiosity.

'Your _Father_ also said to afford me every courtesy as well,' she said. 'Well, you're not being very courteous at the moment!'

Again, there was the tiniest flash of anger across the Cavalier's face, then the mask of formal indifference was back perfectly in place. He took a step closer to her, looking her in the eye.

'Forgive me for my rudeness,' he said at last, sounding much more sincere than Diana had ever heard him be before. In spite of the situation, Diana found herself smiling at him.

They stood in the corridor facing each other, and Diana felt her face starting to redden under his gaze. She had to say something, quickly, now she had the upper hand (and before he realised how she was feeling!).

'It's just… I want to know something about… this… world,' she said, hope he wouldn't realise she was making this up as she was going along. 'I want to know as much as you can tell me.'

Eric regarded her with a vague air of surprise. The, after a moment's thought, he nodded.

'There is only one thing in the Realm that matters,' he said. 'But are you sure you wish to know?'

Diana nodded. It was all so mysterious, how could she not say yes!

'In that case there is something I should show you. Follow me.'

Obediently, the Acrobat followed as Eric headed forward then turned sharply right. Ahead was a wooden door, and behind that was dark and narrow flight of spiral stairs.

'Where are we going?' Diana asked.

Eric made no reply, just started to climb, Diana still in step behind him. Round and round they climbed, up three flights of tight, spiral stairs until they reached a short hallway that ended in another door.

They stopped at the heavy wooden door. This one was different from any of the other doors inside; it had metal studs along the outer rim and a heavy metal hoop for a handle. And it had a lock.

She saw Eric hesitate.

'Where _are_ we going?' she asked again, more quietly this time.

Once more, Eric didn't reply, instead turned the lock and gave the door a great push, letting a gush of cold air in.

Together, they stepped out on the parapet of the Castle; a narrow ledge with great black spikes that curved slightly inwards. It was like they were inside a prison, peering out through the bars.

It was difficult to be absolutely sure of which way they were facing, but they seemed to have walked all the way through to the far side. They were very high up, and Diana shivered in the cold wind that whipped round the small enclosure.

Beside her, Eric looked sadly out to the mountains in the distance.

'Tell me, Acrobat, what do you see?' he asked.

Diana followed his gaze, but all she could see were the mountains and the dark blue sky.

'I only see the horizon,' she said.

Eric nodded.

'Those mountains mark the border of our land,' he told her. 'Beyond that is the Empire of Kadesh.'

At that word, Diana's heart leapt. Kadesh was the kingdom of their friend King Rahmoud. If anyone would understand, he would! For a moment, everything didn't seem quite so bad.

'King Rahmoud!' she said excitedly.

The look of confusion and anger on Eric's face sucked the fleeting joy right out of her.

'There is no _King_ in Kadesh. The Empire is ruled by a man called Kelek.'

Diana just stared in fear. The venomous way Eric had spat out the name made her feel slightly sick. He hated Kelek with a passion, that was crystal clear.

'We are at war with the Emperor,' said the Cavalier. 'And we will be at war until one of the sides utterly destroys the other, even if it takes all the rest of Time itself.'

Eric didn't say anything else, and Diana herself was too surprised to ask any questions for the moment.

The way he spoke about Kelek, and war made her skin crawl. She had a horrible, horrible feeling inside her. This whole situation was just getting worse and worse. There was no Rahmoud, and only endless fighting and war. It wasn't difficult to guess what had happened between Venger and Kelek; Kelek had tried something similar in the Old Realm.

She was suddenly consumed by the desire to know, and to see if her guesses were correct.

'What… what happened?' she asked at last. 'How did this war start?'

Eric turned to look at her, his dark eyes filled with a terrible sorrow and anger. It was a look that was so alien to the Cavalier she had known before that she almost couldn't recognise him. Diana could barely hold his gaze.

'Kelek was once a servant of my Father's,' Eric said slowly. 'But in secret, he plotted to destroy him and rule the Realm in his place. He made a Talisman.' Eric paused for a moment, and Diana's closed her eyes. This had an unpleasantly familiar feeling to it., and she could take a pretty good guess at what he was going to say next.

'Kelek took my Father's herd of Unicorn, and stripped them of their alicorns and their magic powers, especially the power of teleportation. He gathered supporters from the surrounding villages, and in the ranks of the Orc Army.' Eric stopped talking for a moment, and Diana held back the urge to speak. The Cavalier looked so stern and sad that for some reason unwanted tears started in her eyes.

'Then,' said Eric at last, 'one evening, Kelek attacked my Father's Castle, and razed it to the ground killing everyone inside.'

She wanted to ask for more details, but the pained expression on Eric's face stopped her. But there was definitely something he wasn't telling her. However, now was not the time to try and find out.

'My brother and I were not in the castle at the time,' he said after a long silence. 'We were just children. But my Father had no doubt that Kelek had intended to murder us as well. He almost did.' Again, Eric stopped, as if he was trying to find the right words. 'My Father stopped Kelek from completing his plan and destroying us as well as everyone else. Since then, we have been at war.'

Diana could only nod, with a thousand more questions in her head.

'Surely there might be a truce one day,' she said. 'You might find a compromise…'

'No,' said Eric firmly. 'Either we destroy Kelek and his army, or we ourselves are destroyed. Anyone who is a supporter of Kelek is killed without mercy or regret.'

'But… that's murder,' whispered Diana weakly.

'It is no more than they do to us,' Eric replied. 'Kelek has wiped out whole towns who's loyalty he could not count on.'

'And your Father?'

'And so has my Father,' said Eric with a nod. 'This is war. To the death.'

Another wave of sickness flooded through Diana. Oh god, what had they stumbled into? What had they done? How were they going to fix this?

'What about me, and my friends?' she asked. Eric made no answer.

'Well, what about Zandora?'

At the name, Eric snorted.

'That old meddling witch is one of our supposed allies,' he said with a cold laugh. 'Or at least she is an enemy of Kelek, which is not the same thing. She works tirelessly to "put the Realm back in balance", but all she achieves is the needless death of those who follow her.'

Diana gulped. That was what Eric expected to happen to her and her friends.

'If she's an ally, why were you looking for her?'

'She takes Weapons of Power.'

Eric took a deliberately unsubtle glance down to he waistband, where the Javelin was tucked away in its collapsed form.

'Are… are you going to try to take it?'

Eric laughed softly at her bravado, but not with any malice.

'To be of use, weapons must be wielded,' he told her.

'Wielded in the service of Venger?' she said.

With a lightning move, much, much faster than she could have given him credit for, Eric gripped her throat with his gloved hand and squeezed. Diana struggled for breath.

He pulled her close, and looked into her eyes. She couldn't look away.

'It is _Lord_ Venger. Do not make me remind you again.'

She stared back at him, looking into the brown eyes she recognised, but no longer knew, forcing herself to remember that this was still Eric even though he seemed impossibly different. Then she nodded, and the Cavalier released her.

She rubbed her throat, gulping down short shallow gasps of air. She couldn't look at him.

Diana could feel Eric looking at her for a moment, then he gently took her arm and guided her back to the doorway.

'I will escort you to your room,' he said.

Not letting go of her arm, he led her back down the steps and through the different hallways in silence. Diana didn't try to memorise where she was, or where she was going, she was too distracted by what Eric had told her.

Eventually, they stopped at a door, and Eric opened it for her. Inside, Diana could see a small room lit by a low fire in the grate, with a bed, and a small arched window that looked out into the evening.

'Goodnight, Acrobat,' Eric said.

She paused at the doorway, she couldn't seem to move away from him.

A cool thrill passed through her, a mix of feelings she had never experienced before. She had to hold on to the doorframe to stop herself from falling over. If Eric noticed, he didn't react, instead he gave a slight bow, and turned away.

Diana's heart gave a tiny lurch, as if she wanted to say something else.

But it was too late as he was gone. She could hear his footsteps trotting down the stairs, and into the darkness.

She was alone.

She crawled into the bed, pulling the covers up around her. Her throat and neck still ached from where Eric had grabbed her. She realised she was shaking.

The feeling of fear was so raw it hurt. But there was another, harder feeling underneath. This warped, repulsive world should not have existed in the first place. It was wrong, this wasn't how Eric was supposed to be, or Hank, or even Venger.

_Somehow, she was going to change it back, _she promised herself_, in whatever way I can._

* * *


	9. A Romantic Interlude, Version II

Chapter 10

"A Romantic Interlude, Version II."

Within a moment of leaving Venger's Hall, the Ranger had slipped his arm around Sheila's waist guiding her carefully along the darkened halls. She had almost objected, but at the last moment, she couldn't find the right words to say.

They walked in silence and the Thief could barely even hear their footsteps on the stone floor. Everything seemed calm and still and sleeping, not at all what she expected in one of Venger's Castles.

But then Venger himself hadn't been what she expected, not crippled and weakened. And Hank certainly wasn't what she expected, not at all! And that made it all the more difficult to remember what she was here to do. She had to get them back to the Crystal of Kronos, and get back to the other Realm. That was all she had to do.

But deep inside her she knew that that was not going to be easy.

They passed through a wider hall, and across towards some stairs. Beside her, Hank slowed to a stop, and they stood in the middle of the hallway.

'My Father said to extend you every courtesy,' said he quietly, leaning close to her ear to make sure she heard him. 'What courtesy can I provide?'

Sheila opened her mouth but no words came out, only a little gasping noise. She had promised herself she wasn't going to do this. She had promised herself that she would remain unaffected by what was in this Realm and concentrate on getting Hank back to the Realm where they all belonged.

Staring up, she looked more closely at her escort. His hair was much longer than it had been before and there was rough stubble on his face. His expression seemed more playful and knowing than she remembered it, but his eyes looked at her with the same tender concern.

Her mouth went dry and she had to lick her lips. She had to remember why she was there. She was not going to get sucked into anything… _inappropriate_.

'Why do you ask?' she replied.

'I do as my Father commands, Thief,' he said then paused for a moment. 'Do you have a name?'

It seemed odd that Hank would have to ask her who she was, but even more disconcerting was the warmth of a blush that crept over her face when he asked.

'Sheila.'

'Sheila, the Thief,' Hank murmured. 'It has a pleasant sound to it, almost…' he trailed off. For a moment, she imagined that he might recognise it, and the expression on his face was one of wistful remembrance, then the fantasy was gone.

'My name is Hank, and you know I am the Realm's Ranger,' he said, taking her hand in a formal way, and giving her a flamboyant and out of character bow. 'But I think you already know that.'

For a second she wondered what he meant, and if he meant what she hoped he _didn't_ mean; that would be too much to deal with just at the moment. Instead she smiled at him.

'I've heard your name,' she said. 'Your Father mentioned it, and well as your brother.'

It was almost impossible to say the word _brother_ in connection with Hank and Eric, but she managed it without sounding too incredulous.

'Now we are properly introduced, perhaps you will let me show you something of this new world.'

He gave her a warm smile that seemed to make her heart skip slightly. She always liked that smile, even though she had rarely had the chance so savour it in private. Personal privacy was in short supply in the Realm, the _real_ Realm. And in spite of the situation she couldn't help feeling a little bit pleased that she had Hank all to herself. Part of her had always craved the Ranger's undivided attention, and that was exactly what she was getting at the moment. And she was loving every single second, even though Hank wasn't really the same _Hank_…

They were staring into each other's eyes now, and Hank's eyes were _exactly_ the same beautiful powder-blue as she remembered. It was hardly likely that she would forget what they looked like; she would daydream of the few times they had been close enough to look at each other with such intent.

He took her arm protectively.

'Let me show you something. I think you will find it most interesting, and instructive.'

Sheila nodded, refocusing with some difficulty on why she was here in the first place. Anything she could find out might prove useful in the future.

'To survive in the Realm, you must come to know it,' Hank continued. 'And to know it, you have to understand what has happened. The past is very important.'

'What do you mean?' This was nothing like the other Realm, they hadn't been told anything about its history, not from Dungeonmaster or really from anyone. They just got by on what they had picked up as they went along. Dekkion had told them some history, as had Rhamoud, but nothing like the lesson Sheila thought she was about to get from Hank. Whatever it was, it seemed very important to him.

'There is only one thing in the Realm that matters,' he told her in a hushed, almost awed tone.

'What is it?' she managed to say.

With a smooth movement, his hand moved from her arm to her hand, and he gripped it tightly.

'Don't you know?' he asked. Sheila shook her head. Hank gave a decidedly smooth smile. 'Then I should show you.'

He took her hand and led her onward to one of the doorways in the hall, and pushed it open, behind it was another staircase, but this one was narrow, and spiralled upwards in a tight curve.

'Where does it go?' Sheila asked, suddenly anxious. She didn't like this feeling of not knowing what was going on, it made her feel very vulnerable.

But Hank smiled.

'It leads up to one of the towers. We should be able to see across half the Realm from there.'

'Why do we want to see across half the Realm,' she asked. 'Why can't you just tell me?'

This made Hank laugh.

'That is a very good question,' he said. 'But if I told you I would ruin the surprise and the suspense.'

'I don't like surprises,' she said.

'But then how am I supposed to make a memorable impression on you?'

The earnestness of his answer made her smile. Though she was still aware of her resolve not to get too involved, she had to answer honestly.

'You already have made a memorable impression, a very memorable impression, on me.'

'Then come with me, and I'll show you the Realm.'

Still holding her hand, Hank led her upwards. They walked for a number of minutes, and though she felt herself tiring, she kept up with Hank on principal. Being in the Realm, the old Realm had at least kept her very fit!

At last they reached a barred, and bolted doorway, and Hank opened it, letting her precede him through.

The view from the top almost took her breath away. The suns had dipped belong the mountains, leaving dark shadows on the nearby mountains. The sky had turned a rich, luscious velvet-blue and here and there a star twinkled like a jewel. She could see for miles, as the Realm was laid out before her feet.

'I never knew it could be so beautiful here,' she murmured.

'This is one of my favourite viewpoints,' Hank said. 'I could stand here for hours, just looking.'

They stood silently for a few moments, side by side, as the sky turned darker. Sheila tried to keep her thoughts on their task, but she quickly gave up the struggle, content for the moment to enjoy the peace.

'So why _did_ you show me this?' she asked at last.

Hank pointed to the dark mountains on the horizons.

'I wanted to show you where the danger is, where our enemies hide behind false spells.' He tried to sound casual, as he had downstairs in the hall, but she could still detect a bitter anger behind his words.

'Which enemies? Zandora?'

'Zandora!' replied Hank, scornfully. 'Zandora is just a meddling old witch that seems to get in everyone's way. No, I mean our real enemies, the one who would strike at hearts without mercy.'

The words seemed to cut into her, ringing alarm bells inside her head. This was a new Realm, and dangerous, and she didn't know who was right or wrong. Once again, he had to remind herself to be careful. She shivered, and Hank immediately noticed.

'Are you alright? Are you cold? Should we go inside?'

'No!' she replied, perhaps a little too quickly. 'No, I'm fine, it's just…' She turned to look at him, and saw his face filled with concern. It was such a familiar expression, and so unexpected that once again, her ability to speak seemed to vanish. Why did Hank have this effect on her? He waited patiently, making no attempt to hurry her along. 'It's just that there is a lot to take in. A lot has happened today.'

'It seems so unfair to burden you with all this,' Hank said. He took hold of her hand. 'But I think you should be aware of what's happening in the Realm. What dangers there are, and what you need to be wary of.'

He looked at her, staring intently into her eyes. _Oh, God, those eyes were just so perfect…_She found she couldn't look away.

'What dangers?' she managed to say at last. 'Who is your enemy?'

Hank's expression grew colder.

'Beyond the mountains is the stronghold of a wizard by the name of Kelek,' he replied. Hank's face was contorted with anger at the name and Sheila's blood turned cold.

'K-Kelek?'

'My Father's mortal enemy.'

'_Kelek_? But… how? What happened?'

The crushing anger that had shown on his face was gone, and Hank looked at Sheila with tender concern.

'They have been enemies for a long, long time. And we will not rest until Kelek and all the rest of his empire at Kadesh has been destroyed.'

Sheila started at the name, suddenly reminded of Rhamoud and Ayesha, and they close friendship. It seemed pointless to ask about them, as if Kelek ruled Kadesh, Rhamoud could be anywhere!

'What happened,' she asked again. Somehow, it seemed an important thing to know.

'Kelek attacked the castle,' Hank said. 'He bribed and terrorised and coerced some of our troops and servants into joining him and he tried to take this castle by force. He failed, but… but the cost was very high.'

'Ven… I mean, your Father, that's how he was injured?'

Hank nodded.

'Kelek tried to kill my whole family. Eric and I only survived by our Father's intervention. We have never forgotten what cost our lives came at, or the deaths of that were not prevented.'

Hank looked at her, with a shine of tears in his eyes, and Sheila's heart, already filled with fear and anxiety, filled with a cold dread.

'Who?' she whispered.

'Our mother,' he replied, just as quietly. 'And our sister.'

She should have been expecting something like that. She thought she had been, but she was speechless. Suddenly this whole Realm, and their presence here and their task to get Hank and Eric back to the real Realm seemed hopelessly more complicated than it had just a few moments before.

They had lives here, real, difficult, complex lives that had meant something, they had a family that they had cared for. They had a mother… and a sister that she knew nothing about.

She looked away from Hank, so confused and afraid that she didn't know what to do next. But Hank pulled her close to him, putting his arm round her shoulders.

How were they ever going to put right what had gone wrong? How were they going to get Hank, and Eric, back to the real Realm?

She closed her eyes for a moment, and when she opened them again, she found she was looking directly at Hank. There was so much that was different about him, but there was so much the same, he even seemed to smell the same, to her at least. Then there was the way he looked at her. As much as she hated to admit it to herself, she liked it _a lot_.

As she looked at him, wondering about the similarities and the differences, very, very slowly, he leaned towards her, and kissed her.

It seemed to be a perfect moment in time. This was what she had always wanted, and what she had dreamed about, a beautiful, delicate kiss, Hank sweeping her completely off her feet. She leaned into him, retuning his kiss as passionately as she could, completely consumed by the feeling.

His hand, once tightly on her waist slid upwards a fraction and suddenly Sheila jerked away as if she had been burned.

_This wasn't right_.

What was she doing? How could she have let herself forget what was going on?

Breathless, and utterly confused, the Thief leaned back against the wall to try and keep her balance.

She looked at the man in front of her, forcing herself to remember that this wasn't the Hank she had known and fallen in love with.

It was the first time she had even acknowledged what had happened, and that she had indeed fallen completely in love with the Ranger.

But it wasn't this Ranger she had fallen in love with. _He wasn't the same!_

She had to remember that. No matter how attractive he was. No matter how good at kissing he was either.

'We had better go to downstairs,' Hank said. 'I'll take you to your room.'

Sheila nodded. He hadn't released his grip on her waist but now, as before, he turned and guided her to the doorway in a very protective manner. Together they descended back into the gloomy castle, and Hank led her through the corridors. They walked in silence, and Sheila was glad of that, she had no desire to speak at the moment, as she was sure whatever they talked about would just make her even more confused.

They arrived at another door, and Hank stopped.

'This is your room,' he said, opening the door for her. 'Sleep well, Sheila.'

'Thank you, Hank.'

She took a deep breath. In spite of everything it would be a welcome change to sleep in a real bed again. And though the situation was complicated, at least she had found Hank. Her heart sped up; _and they had kissed_. She smiled shyly.

'Goodnight,' she said.

'Goodnight.'

But as she shut the door, out of the corner of her eye, she thought she saw him give cold, calculating smile.

* * *


	10. A Hard Day's Night

Chapter 10

A Hard Day's Night

With every step closer they got to the Castle, the feeling of foreboding grew inside Presto. He, Ray, Bobby and Varla, with Tang the Bronze Dragon waddling along behind, had been walking since the early hours of the morning, and now the suns were starting to peak over the top of the ominous black mountains ahead, with Venger's Castle still hiding in the shadow.

Presto could see their destination getting closer and closer, and he knew that he would soon have to start up the conversation that he'd been dreading. Every time he tried to think about what to do next, his mind seemed to go blank.

For the most part he walked in silence. But he stayed close to Varla at all times, even though he was not in much of a mood to talk, to her or anyone else. Ray had realised this too, and he had determinedly engaged Varla in conversation, seemingly filled with curiosity about this new Realm. Presto was content to listen, as Ray asked all sorts of questions about the Realm and the people in it.

It was through Varla that they learned of the Great War between Venger and Kelek, and the way that war had destroyed half the Realm and poisoned most the other half.

'There are few left to fight, on either side,' Varla told them. 'There are few left in the Realm at all. We all must make whatever we can of the chances we get, to survive.'

'It must have been hard for you,' said Ray. 'For everyone.'

Varla nodded. But she couldn't meet Presto's eyes, and again he wondered what hardships she had endured, the ones that she wasn't telling them. She was the same on the outside but so different inside. He had thought he knew and understood her, and that they had a special bond that surpassed all of that. But after this meeting, he wasn't so sure of that any more. This Varla was _different_.

At last, the path they were following petered out, and they were left to make their way forward as best they could. The undergrowth grew thicker and their progress slowed. Venger's Castle loomed on the horizon like a bad dream. There was no getting away from it.

It took them most of the morning to trudge up as close to it as they dared, and then they stopped. They had reached the point where the Magician was going to have to make a decision. There was no more ground cover, and if they were going to continue, they would need something else to protect them.

Presto was of course thinking about the Hat, it was about the only thing that could properly distract his mind away from the mess they were all in. How was he ever in a million years going to get the Hat to cooperate for long enough to get them all safely inside? (He didn't even start to think about ho he was going to use the Hat to find the girls and Joseph, find Eric and Hank, and get everyone to the Kronos Crystal in one piece! That would have been too much to hope for!).

The five of them huddled together at the edge of the undergrowth, hidden by the blackened bushes and twisted trees. Bobby sat down on one of the chipped boulders that were strewn around, and Tang came up and sat beside him, mirroring the miserable look on the Barbarian's face.

They waited there in silence for a minute, looking at the Castle in front of them, the Magician with a growing feeling of sickness in the back of his throat. At last, he took a deep breath, forcing himself to say the words that had been lingering on the tip of his tongue since they had started walking.

'Do we have a plan?'

There was a pause.

'Don't you have one?' asked Ray, frowning at him. 'I thought _you_ were the one who knew what he was doing!'

'Well…'

'_I_ have a plan,' said Varla, with a slightly superior air that Presto didn't like.

Ray gave a sigh or relief.

'At least someone does!'

Presto scowled at him.

'That's not helping!' he turned to Varla, still standing there with her arms crossed and that smug air. 'What's your idea?'

'We just… walk in,' she replied. Before he could say anything in response, Varla suddenly changed from the beautiful woman he adored into a six-foot Orc dressed in a tunic, with green skin, blunt, yellowing tusks and a whip.

Presto gasped, instinctively looking round and Bobby and Ray. The same thing had happened to them. He looked down at himself, trying to keep firm control over his breathing. He was an Orc too!

'How did you do that?' the Orc that was Ray asked him in a tone of wonderment.

'It wasn't me,' said Presto. 'It's an Illusion!'

He stared at Orc-Varla, thinking that now she was starting to show off, and her smile grew wider until the Orc-face was virtually leering at him.

'So we're just gonna walk in, looking like this?' said Ray. 'You sure it's going to work?'

That question was addressed to Presto, not Varla, and Presto decided to nod, even though he wasn't absolutely sure himself.

'Yeah!' he said. 'It'll work. It'll be fine.'

'What about him?' asked Bobby, speaking for the first time in a long time. He was pointing to the baby Bronze Dragon that was still sitting on the rock next to him.

'Well, I couldn't change him into an Orc,' said Varla. 'It would never work. And he's too small!'

Presto was nearly going to argue the point about Illusions and size differential, but he didn't She knew what she was doing better than him. And who was to say that her magic worked _exactly_ the same here as in the old Realm? Orc-Varla was staring at him, waiting to challenge anything he said. He closed his mouth.

'So what _are_ we going to do with Tang?' Ray asked, his voice slightly slurred thanks to the tusks. 'We can't leave him here!'

'We need him.'

'We do?' asked Presto, that familiar fearful feeling returning to him. _Why couldn't this be easier? Why did everyone have to ask so many questions? Why couldn't something be simple for a change?_

'We might be Orcs, but they don't just let anybody walk into their Castle,' replied Varla in such a reasonable tone that Presto almost apologised for thinking differently. But as she spoke, Tang hissed and glared at the Illusionist, its yellow eyes narrowed with suspicion.

'That doesn't explain why we need him,' said Ray.

'He will get us in,' replied Varla.

Having been around Eric for so long in the other Realm, Presto could recognise an evasive answer at fifty paces. And so, it seemed, could Ray.

'Yes, but _how_?' insisted the Sage. Suddenly the Staff in Ray's hand began to glow red at the tip. Presto looked in surprise as Ray's expression changed from one of curiosity to horror.

'That's your plan?' asked Ray incredulously. 'Just hand him over to Venger's Orcs and let them take him away!'

Varla gave Ray a venomous look, all the more potent coming from the face on an Orc.

'What else do you suggest we do, Sage?' she replied. 'If we don't prove we are trustworthy to the Orcs on guard, we'll be in the dungeons before we can draw our weapons, before we even have a chance to step inside. We won't have a chance to do anything, or find anybody.'

Ray looked away, frowning at the ground.

'Let me get this straight,' said Presto. 'To get us into the Castle, we have to give them Tang?'

Varla nodded.

'Venger has been searching for the Dragon for a long time,' she said.

'That plan _sucks_!' the Barbarian chipped in loudly. 'You can't do that to him!'

'What else do you suggest we do, little boy?' asked Varla. 'Besides, that creature can take care of himself!'

Tang hissed at her again.

'This is not a good idea,' said Ray.

'We don't have any time to debate it,' replied Varla. 'Either we get in to the Castle or we don't and any chance of getting your friends back will vanish. It's simple.'

It did sound straightforward enough, but Presto still didn't like it.

'But he's just a baby Dragon!' protested Bobby. Varla snorted.

'That little creature has been evading Venger for years! He's more than capable of getting himself out of any situation that we get him into.'

Presto opened his mouth to argue, and as he looked at Tang, he saw the contrite, innocuous expression on the Dragon's face, an expression that reminded him of Eric trying to get out of doing any washing up.

'That's true,' he said to Tang. 'What she said, that's true, is it? If there's trouble, you can get yourself out of it?'

Tang looked shiftily from side to side, and his snout twitched. After a moment more, the Dragon nodded.

'That's just great,' muttered the Magician, the only real objection to the plan now gone.

'Presto! You're not going to go along with her plan?' demanded Bobby. 'You're not going to hand him over?'

'Well…'

'That's cruel! Venger's _evil_!'

The Magician didn't like to even think about it, but he didn't see what else they could do. However, Bobby hadn't finished.

'How do you know he'd be safe?' the Barbarian demanded.

'I don't, but…'

'How do you know nothing would go wrong?' Bobby continued.

'I…'

'Just 'cos you don't know him! Would you do the same if it was Uni?'

The final word clearly stung to say, and the Barbarian lapsed into a sulky silence.

At a loss for words, Presto stared blankly at the Barbarian-Orc and shrugged. How did Hank cope with all these questions and arguments? He didn't know the right thing to do, he was just making this up as he went along! He was doing the best he could!

'I have the solution,' said Ray suddenly. He knelt down beside Tang. 'Look, we're in a jam. We need to get into that Castle, and you're the only way we can do it.' Tang watched the Sage-Orc, his eyes bright with interest. 'Will you help us? Please?'

Tang cocked his head to one side, then the other, Presto held his breath, the question of what they were going to do if Tang said "no" filling his mind.

Tang's little pink tongue appeared, and he licked his lips, appearing nervous. His gaze hadn't waived from Ray, and he had given no sign that he understood, but suddenly his nose twitched again and he gave a vigorous nod. With that, he leaped up onto the Sage's shoulder, chirping.

'I think that's Dragon for "ok"!' said Ray.

'So that is settled then,' said Varla. She looked straight at the Magician, expecting him to answer. In spite of the sinking feeling inside his stomach, Presto felt he had no choice but to agree. He nodded.

'Then we should go now,' she said. Without waiting, she turned and started to walk.

Every step towards the Castle made Presto feel that little bit more ill. There was no comfort from the others; they all looked like Orcs, and were keeping their heads down, and at that moment Presto felt impossibly lonely. He couldn't help doubting what was going on; he was nominally the leader here, but he didn't feel like he was doing a very good job.

He thought of all the times that this must have happened to Hank, though he hadn't realised it at the time. How many times had Hank and Eric argued, and Hank been forced into making a decision? Did he feel like this, so anxious and unsure? Presto doubted it, Hank had always been so good at leading them, and dealing with other people's opinions and ideas and balancing everything out.

Whatever else Hank would have done in this situation, it wouldn't have been this.

And that thought made Presto just feel even worse.

But he was committed now. They were half way across the wide, open space that was before the Castle moat, he could see Orc's at the gate shifting around and the group had clearly been seen, and preparations were being made.

They couldn't back out now, even though he desperately wanted to. All he could do was grin like an Orc and hope it was all over soon.


	11. In The Cold Light Of Day

Chapter 11

In The Cold Light Of Day

Diana slept late the next morning. The Realm's suns were already flooding her room with yellow light when she started to stir.

She didn't want to wake up. She felt warm and relaxed, and desperately wanting to sleep on and not wake up. There was no rush, no hurry. Deep down inside there was a tiny voice that just wouldn't let her stay content, now she was awake. But it was so tempting. She could imagine dark eyes, and dark hair, a handsome but arrogant face. She wanted to stay here.

She wanted to stay here… with _Eric_.

The thought jerked her awake as if she had been stabbed through the heart with an ice-cold knife.

For a few moments, she looked round the room, confused. This couldn't be there Realm; she was sleeping on a bed, a real, soft comfortable bed and though she felt tired, she still felt safe. That wasn't like the Realm she knew at all!

But this wasn't the same. Everything had gone wrong.

Was that right? Was it still the wrong Realm?

Somehow it seemed distant and out of focus after her sleep.

_Eric, Hank… they weren't the same._

She knew she should be thinking about how to help them, and worrying about Presto, Bobby, Ray and Joseph, but all she could think about was Eric.

No matter how hard she tried, her mind drifted back to the stilted conversation in the Castle's halls, and the dark, dangerous presence that the Cavalier had shown.

Diana shivered.

Pushing herself upright she got out of bed and pulled on her clothes, tucking the collapsed Javelin into its familiar place. Her first priority must be to find the Sheila and Joseph. Diana smiled as she remembered the look of awe on Sheila's face as she'd walked off with Hank. And then there was Joseph and Venger… what had they talked about? She was dying to find out!

The mental fog from her sleep was starting to clear, and she was feeling more focused. She was smart enough to realise that this Realm was starting to grow on her. She was changing loyalties and her way of thinking. There was Joseph, and Eric, and Hank to consider.

And she knew instinctively that somehow, whatever they were going to do, they were going to have to do it soon. In the clear, cold light of morning, she sensed time running out.

It all seemed uncomplicated, here in this Castle; Venger and Kelek were caught in a destructive war to the death, while Zandora skulked in the shadows with weapons, trying in vain to bring balance back to the Realm, now Dungeonmaster was gone and virtually forgotten.

But then she tried to think back to the other Realm, and the details seemed fuzzy. Which one was Dekkion again? Was he the King or the Knight? Did Rhamoud have a daughter or a son? Who was Zinn again? And who was Lawrence? There was supposed to be some connection, wasn't there? And Kosar… he was familiar, and her heart seemed beat more quickly at the thought of his name, and her mind filled with light and overwhelming joy and unbearable sadness. But who was he again…?

_Who_?

Once more, there was a stabbing, cold chill that when through her as she forced herself to remember. Kosar. Child of Light. Turad. _Syrith_…

Tears formed in her eyes as she remembered looking up to the huge figure of the Child of Light in the Temple, seconds… no, only _moments_ before he vanished forever. _Kosar_!

No! That wasn't right!

She couldn't have forgotten him. She could never forget Kosar!

A wave of panic rushed over her. She couldn't have forgotten so much. This place, it was playing tricks on her. They had to get out of here!

With a decisive step forward, Diana headed for the door. Whatever else she had forgotten, she knew she had to find Sheila and do something about it.

She yanked open the door.

And Orc Captain was standing there, on guard, with a large sword and a very cross look on its tusked face.

'You may not leave!' it told her.

'What!' Of all the things she expected to stand in her way, an Orcs wasn't one of them.

'You may not leave. Not safe.'

She couldn't quite decide if it meant it was dangerous _for_ her or it was dangerous _because_ of her. Either way, she didn't much care.  
'I want to get past,' she told it.

'I got my orders,' it said, crossing its arms. 'Not safe!'

She could hardly believe she was standing there arguing with an Orc! She should just hit it with her Javelin! That's what she would have done… wasn't it…?

It was all getting confusing.

Fortunately, she was saved any trouble by the appearance of Joseph, from a room a little way down the hall. He was half dressed and looking bleary-eyed and angry.

She stared at him, at his long, muscular legs, his boxer shorts, his naked chest and broad shoulders. She kept on staring at him.

'Diana!' he said.

Instead of being shy, he put his hands on his hips and glared at her, the gesture reminding her so forcefully of the old Eric that she leaned back against the doorframe to steady herself.

'And when you two are quite finished posing…' said a voice from behind her, the other end of the hall. It was Sheila, a properly dressed Sheila, who was barely hiding the giggle in her voice.

Diana scowled.

'We need to talk.'

With a sneer at the Orc, Diana marched past it, towards Joseph. Sheila followed her example.

'Hey!' called the Orc. 'Not safe! I got my orders!'

She whirled round at it.

'I'm not going far. I'll be in there!' She pointed.

'But…' Diana blocked out the rest of the Orc's objections and kept on going towards Joseph's room. Once inside, she shut the door with a satisfying bang.

'I don't see why _I_ was the one that needed the Orc guard!' she said indignantly. 'That's insulting!'

'Calm down, Diana,' said Sheila. 'At least it's outside and not in here too.'

The Acrobat nodded.

Joseph's room was decorated in exactly the same way as hers, and she presumed Sheila's was similar too. She settled down at the end of the crumpled bed, flicking the end of the sheet with her thumb.

Joseph pulled on his undershirt, but left the rest of his armour off. Diana still stared at his legs as he sat next to her.

'I'm glad to see you both,' said Sheila. 'It's all been so… confusing.'

Diana almost replied, when she noticed Sheila licking her lips in a nervous fashion, and she wondered what _exactly_ had happened between Hank and Sheila last night. But she wasn't going to pry at the moment, she would have to ask later.

It turned out that they each had learned the same thing; that Kelek and Venger were locked in a war to the death.

Sheila reported a similar experience to Diana, she was shown the Realm from the ramparts and told about what had happened. Joseph seemed to sulk when Diana told them the basic details about her evening with Eric, and she was glad she had decided to leave out the part about emotional reaction to the Cavalier. Getting Joseph jealous was to going to help the situation.

Joseph's evening appeared to be the least interesting, even if he had spent it with Venger. He was hazy about the specifics, as there had been a huge amount of information to take in, but he had been given the (very slow) grand tour of the castle until while Venger had lectured him long into the night about the history of the Realm, telling him in too much dull detail about all the intricate plots. Diana was surprised she hadn't thought Venger would be so uninteresting, but Joseph seemed to be unperturbed about the whole experience, saying it was no more "difficult" than history at school.

After they had swapped storied came the next problem.

'But what are we going to do next?' said Sheila, looking at the Acrobat.

Diana frowned. It had seemed so simple and straightforward yesterday.

'We've got to find the Crystal,' she replied. 'The we need to get Eric and Hank to it, and get through.'

'That's not much of a plan,' said Joseph. 'And it's no different from yesterday's plan either! Look what happened there!'

Diana scowled at him.

'You're not helping.'

'And we have to find Bobby,' insisted Sheila. She frowned.

'And Presto and Ray,' added Diana.

Sheila's face grew more dark and unhappy.

'This place,' the Thief said. 'It's so strange, it's so _different_. So much has changed. There's so much more that I thought there would be, they have lives here. They had a sister, did you know that? Hank told me. Here he had a family.'

'Sister?' said Diana incredulously.

'And Venger had a wife,' said Joseph.

Diana looked in surprise, but the Paladin nodded.

'He keeps pictures of them both in his halls,' continued Joseph. 'He said it reminds him.'

'You _saw_ them? Venger's daughter? Venger's _wife_!'

Joseph shrugged, as if to say "do you think I'm making this up!"

For some reason this new bit of information made her feel incredibly uncomfortable. Neither Hank nor Eric had any siblings back in the "real" Realm, not like her and Sheila. It felt like this new piece of information should make a difference.

'What happened to them?' she asked.

'They vanished the night this Kelek attacked,' said Joseph.

Diana frowned, wondering why Eric hadn't seen fit to mention that little fact to her. It felt like he had been keeping secrets from her and that hurt her pride. She knew that this was the wrong reaction to have, but she couldn't help it.

'Well, that's even more reason to act,' she said. 'We're going to have to do something, and quickly. It's all getting too… complicated! We've got to get Eric and Hank, find the Crystal of Kronos wherever it is, and get the heck out of Dodge!'

'But it's here,' said Joseph.

For a moment Diana was confused, but then it dawned on her what he meant. The Crystal… it was here in this Castle!

'How do _you_ know?' asked Sheila.

'How do you think I know?' retorted Joseph sounding annoyed.

Diana wasn't listening. The Crystal was here! Of course it was!

Where else would Venger keep such a precious and dangerous object in time of war?

It was here in this Castle!

A plan started to form in her mind, but then the sudden elation vanished as she remembered where she was. This was Venger's Castle, full of Orcs and lizardmen and who knew what else. This was his Keep that had been breached once before and she could be sure he had learned from the mistakes of the past.

She took a deep breath, suddenly afraid.

The Crystal might be here, but the trick was going to be getting to it!

* * *


	12. Qualified Reunion

Chapter 12

Qualified Reunion

'Whatever we are going to do,' said Sheila, 'we can't do it sitting around here!'

Diana nodded. Getting away from these rooms, maybe even away from the Castle _completely_ and look for Presto and the others was the most sensible idea. And maybe that would help clear her head as well and help her to keep focused.

But she dismissed the thought. Eric and Hank were here; the Crystal was here. They had to stay, however much she didn't want to.

'We've got to get out of these rooms,' said Diana.

'What about the others?' asked Sheila. 'What about Bobby, and Presto and Ray? How are we gonna find them?'

'Maybe they'll try and find us,' said Joseph, standing up, and starting to pull his armour on. 'If we were in their position, that's what we would do.'

To Diana, there seemed to be some kind of faulty logic with that statement, but nevertheless she agreed; Presto and the others would come here looking for them.

When Joseph was dressed, he picked up the Sword of the Paladin, giving it a little swish as he did so. He seemed a lot more at ease with it than he had the day before. Diana watched him nervously, thinking how comfortable he seemed here, in a place none of them belonged.

'Bobby and Presto will think we've been captured,' said Sheila. 'They'll come to rescue us. They're probably working on a plan right now.'

Bobby, Ray and Presto working on a _plan_ didn't sound that helpful to Diana, but she didn't say anything, as it would have seemed rude. After all, they themselves didn't have much of a plan either!

'Let's get out here and down to the courtyard,' said Diana. 'Then we might be able to see what's going on more clearly.'

'Um, Diana?' asked Sheila. 'What about the guard? You know, the Orc? We can't just hit him and walk off.'

Diana scowled, still slightly annoyed that the Orc had been sent to watch _her_ and not any of the others.

'That Orc's not going to stop me!' she said, standing up and moving to the door.

'But…!'

Diana yanked open the door and, ignoring the Orc, walked off down the corridor, Joseph and Sheila following behind her.

'Hey!' the Captain shouted after her. 'Not safe! My orders!'

Diana stopped and whipped round, looking regally at the Orc, and lifting her head high.

'_We_ are the guests of Lord Venger,' said Diana coldly. 'And I expect you to show us some courtesy.' She leaned forward, close to the Orc's piggy face. 'I do not wish to report your… disobedience to your Master!'

The Orc looked cowed by the threat, and Diana turned and marched on. They walked down the corridor, and the Orc didn't follow them. A few moments later they had reached a T junction of corridors, and the Acrobat stopped.

'Where now?' asked Joseph.

'You're the one that got the grand tour,' said Diana. 'You should know which was is out!'

Joseph gave her a slightly acerbic _look_, then pointed down the corridor that led left.

'I think it's that way.'

'I don't think Hank or Eric, or Venger, are going to be very pleased if they find us wandering about,' said Sheila.

_It's too late to worry about that now_, thought Diana.

'We'd better get moving and find somewhere that's safe,' said Sheila. 'Or safer than standing in the middle of a corridor!'

Together, they walked down the gloomy, empty corridors, until the reached a set of narrow stairs that seemed to disappear into darkness.

One by one, they descended into the gloom, the light growing fainter and fainter, a muffled noise of movement from the bottom growing as they did. Diana was in the lead, and she walked as quietly as she could, feeling her way down the twisting spiral of the stairwell with her hand on the rough, stone wall.

At last, Sheila reached out to touch Diana's arm, urging her to stop.

'What do you think's making all that noise?' she whispered.

'Don't know.'

'Well, let me past, and I'll take a quick look,' said Sheila. There was the rustle of noise as she lifted the hood of her Cloak, but there wasn't enough light to see that Sheila had vanished.

Diana pressed herself against the wall as the Thief squeezed past.

'Won't be long,' Sheila told her. 'Stay here.'

_I was really going to go somewhere else_, thought Diana. Then she frowned. That's exactly what Eric, other Realm Eric, would have said to Sheila in this sort of situation. Once again, Diana felt the cold chill of fear creep over her, and she shivered. This place was doing strange things to her. How come she could remember nuances in his speech, and know what he would have done, when she was struggling to remember whatshisname from Kadesh and the other one, the one with the pretty eyes…

'Diana!' She jumped as Joseph suddenly whispered in her ear. 'Diana, are you alright?'

'I think so,' she whispered back.

'I don't like this.'

'I don't like it much either.'

'How long is she going to be?'

Diana hesitated, licking her dry lips and trying to think.

'Don't know. But let's get closer to the bottom,' she said.

Treading much more slowly, Diana and Joseph started to descend the steps once again. There was some light again, and Diana was hopeful that they were getting close to the end of these infernal stairs.

The noise had become clearer as well, it sounded like the normal bustle and activity of a busy town. But that made Diana feel even less confident. Surely there weren't that many Orcs in the Castle.

They stopped once more, and she looked round at Joseph. In the gloom, he smiled at her, putting his hand on her shoulder, though not even that gesture of comfort could disguise the fact that they were both worrying about the same thing; what was going on below them.

They stood still for a minute, leaning against the cold wall of the stairwell.

She tried to concentrate on what was happening, but she found it increasingly difficult to concentrate on one thing. She closed her eyes, feeling cold and miserable and lonely, in spite of Joseph's comforting presence. She wanted to go home, back to their real home, with all her friends and all the people she missed; her Mom and Dad, David, Eric and Hank, Presto, Sheila and Bobby. She didn't want to be in this nightmare any longer.

'Hey!'

Diana jerked up at the sound, her hand reaching for the Javelin, but the voice belonged to Sheila.

'Hey, come down a bit further!'

Diana flicked a quick grin at Joseph, trying to show some confidence that she didn't feel and started down the last few steps. Sheila was waiting for them at the bottom, her Cloak round her shoulders.

'What is it?' whispered Diana as they reached the bottom.

'It's an army!' said Sheila. 'Thousands and thousands and _more_!'

Diana turned to look back in despair at Joseph.

'But they are all concentrated on the far side of the wall,' Sheila said. 'There's not that many inside the Castle itself.'

The loud sigh from Joseph summed up exactly how Diana felt as well.

'Come on!' said Sheila.

The corridor they stepped out into was bright and wide, and still decorated in Venger's austere style.

Sheila shepherded them along to the right, past a narrow window, and Diana caught a brief glance out to the land beyond, seeing the thousands of Orcs gathered there. She shook her head in wonder, she had never seen so many Orcs in one place before. _Or had she_… she couldn't remember…

A short way ahead they turned a corner and were suddenly faced with the entrance to a large, open-air courtyard. There were thick arches that stood round its edge, and heavy stone blocks in various places around it. She couldn't see everything that was happening, but there were only a few Orcs, and all looked busy with whatever they were doing.

All of a sudden, a shout went up, and they all froze, Diana felt Sheila at her elbow.

'What's happening?' she asked.

The Acrobat looked out round the corner slightly. At the other entrance of the courtyard there was a gang of four Orcs tat seemed to have just arrived. And they had that little Bronze Dragon. What had Eric called it? _Tang_…?

'Orcs,' she whispered. 'I think they've captured that small dragon we found.'

'Oh no!' gasped Sheila. 'What about Bobby! Is he there? Can you see?'

'Shh!' hissed Joseph. 'They'll hear!'

Diana looked more carefully at the courtyard. There was something very odd about what was going on. The little dragon sat in the centre of the group, it looked afraid, but… something was wrong…

She looked again. The Dragon was sitting on the Orc Captain's arm, it was partly turned away from everything else, and it _did_ look scared. But if she didn't know any better, she would have said the little creature was clinging to the Orc, for protection.

And now she looked, the Orcs that had captured it didn't look that happy either.

The other Orcs around the courtyard were milling around in an unsettled fashion, the arrival of these newcomers had clearly upset the normal routine.

Suddenly, Eric appeared, in a blur of black and silver, sweeping across the courtyard. Diana ducked back slightly, but couldn't take her eyes off the Cavalier.

'I do not recognise you,' he said to the Captain that had brought the Dragon. The Orc looked even more terrified than it had earlier.

Diana looked at that Orc, her forehead creased with a deep frown. Orcs were craven creatures, they respected nothing and were only brought into line by power. But that particular Orc was far more nervous than it should have been. Unless it was plotting something. Diana thought back to what Eric had told her about Kelek buying the loyalties of Venger's servants, and wondered if this was another trick.

But not even that explained the Orc's attitude.

It was fidgeting with something in its hand and the gesture suddenly reminded Diana of Presto and the Hat. But it wasn't just similar. It was _exactly_ the same!

She gasped, far too loudly. That was Presto!

He was disguised as an Orc!

Eric was now glaring more fiercely at the Orc, a curved sneer on his face. He probably suspected it of treason, and Diana knew she had to do something.

Without stopping to explain herself to the others, or to worry about what was going to happen if she was _wrong_, the Acrobat darted forward.

'Cavalier!' she called.

He turned his ferocious gaze on her. She had forgotten how arresting that look could be and her heart suddenly leaped in fear. _Yes, it was fear_, she told herself. It wasn't anything else!

'Eric!' she said.

He didn't speak, just continued to stare at her. Diana felt slightly light-headed.

'I-I need to speak to you,' she told him, though she had no idea what she was going to say.

'Where is your escort!' he demanded.

Diana suddenly scowled, putting her hands on her hips.

'Oh, so it was _you_ that left the Orc there!'

'Of course!' he snapped. 'You are our guests.'

His slightly hurt tone made Diana pause, but the "Orc Captain" with the Dragons that Eric had been talking to shifted in a nervous fashion, reminding her why she was here.

'There is a very important matter that I must discuss with you. Please.'

Eric mimicked her stance and flicked up an eyebrow. The gesture was so similar to the Old Realm Eric that Diana gawped in surprise.

'I have my duties here,' said the Cavalier. 'These Orcs…'

Not sure of what else to do, Diana smiled, and Eric stopped dead in the middle of the sentence. He stared at her, but the cold was gone from his face.

'I promise this will only take a moment,' she said.

'Very well,' he said suddenly. He turned to one of the other Orcs close by. 'Escort these to the guardroom. Await me there.'

He held out his hand to Diana in a formal fashion.

'If you will come with me, Acrobat,' he said.

They walked together out the other way, close to where Joseph and Sheila must be hiding. Eric led her to a small room, and motioned her inside.

She looked around in surprise. There were a few book, a table, a few old weapons hung on the wall for decoration. But it had a private, intimate feel to it.

'These are my chambers,' said Eric quietly. 'If there is something you wish to discuss privately, we may do so here.'

He stepped right up to her. He was still slightly taller than she was, and broader than she remembered, the black armour suited him better than the bright primary colours he'd had before.

He still looked like Eric, he still sounded like Eric, he still smelt like Eric and Diana felt her breathing grow more shallow.

They looked at each other and Diana found it impossible to look away. His brown eyes seemed almost black. They looked at each other in silence, then Diana leaned close to him, her grip tightening on her Javelin.

She was going to kiss him. She desperately wanted to kiss him… she desperately wanted to kiss… _Eric_. That name burned across her mind like a falling star, shattering the intimate mood in an instant.

Her breath caught suddenly and she jerked back. A moment later, while the Cavalier was still looking at her with an inquisitive expression on his face, she swung her Javelin up with as much strength as she could.

It cracked across the side of his face, and Eric collapsed to the ground.

* * *


	13. Fracture

Chapter 13

Fracture

Diana staggered back against the table, her hand to her mouth, as she looked down at the prone form of the Cavalier.

What had she just done?

She wasn't sure what she felt worse about, hitting him or almost _kissing_ him! She had almost kissed Eric! Her mind was reeling from the shock. What in heaven's name was she thinking! _Kissing Eric…_?

There was the sudden sound of running from out the door, but Diana didn't move, too surprised and confused to give it the thought it deserved. Abruptly the door burst open.

'Eric, come on! The Orcs have brought Tang and…'

Diana looked up, blinking. Hank was there in the doorway, staring at her.

He looked down at his unconscious brother, then up questioningly at the Acrobat.

'He just…' she stuttered. 'He tried… I…'

The cruellest smile crossed Hank's face, stabbing into Diana. Hank had never looked like that before, so downright _nasty_.

'I…' she tried again.

But Hank made a gesture with his hand and suddenly there was something coiling round her neck, cutting off her air. Her fingers scrabbled at her neck, but there was nothing there to pull away. His hand seemed to glow red with magic.

'What are you _doing_ in here with him?' Hank spat. The cruel expression was gone, but he looked at her without mercy.

Diana could only make little choking sounds, here eyes filling with tears of pain. She tried to turn around or move somehow, but she couldn't. She seemed to be frozen in place.

Hank took a few steps forward.

'I don't really need to ask,' said Hank. 'Do I?'

He leered at her, letting his eyes roam down her body, lingering on the curves. Then he gave a soft chuckle.

'You thought he'd been an easy target, that I would be too clever to fall for your tricks. Your little red-hair _friend_ wasn't as good at it as you though. The chase was too boring. It was far, far to easy with her to be of any interest to me.'

He took another step forward.

'But you,' he said. 'You would be much more of a challenge to tame.'

'I…'

'I will make sure that my Father let's me keep you,' he said, licking his lips. 'And Eric won't care one way or the other.'

Diana vainly tried to struggle free of the magic's grip, her heart filled with a terrible cold fear of what Hank was going to do.

'I-I…'

There was a sudden swish of movement behind Hank, Diana had barely even registered it before Hank swayed and his eyes rolled up. Then he pitched forward, landing on the floor just beside Eric.

The magic around her dissipated, and Diana dropped to the floor, gasping for breath, rubbing her bruised throat.

A second later, there was a blur of magic and she looked up. Sheila was standing there, holding one of the metal weapons from the wall, and expression of horror and revulsion on her face.

The two girls looked at each other then down at the two boys lying on the floor. Diana pushed the fear and the disgust away.

This was their chance! They had both Eric and Hank in the one place. Presto and the others were close by. The Crystal was here somewhere. She could be afraid later. Right now there were others things to worry about, because now they really _were _running out of time!

'We've gotta get going!' said Diana breathlessly.

To her intense relief, Sheila gave a small nod.

They looked down at the two unconscious boys, knowing that there was no way in hell they would be able to move them on their own.

'How…?' started Sheila, but there was more noise outside the door, and they both looked up. Sheila reached for the hood of her Cloak, and Diana for her Javelin.

An Orc appeared at the door, and another, and another, and another.

Diana braced herself to fight but just as she raised her arm one of them spoke.

'Sheila!' it cried joyfully.

'Bobby? _Bobby_?'

The Orc nodded, bounding forward to embrace her.

Though Diana was wary, she saw the other two Orcs grin in an unnaturally friendly way.

'Presto? Ray?' she asked. The grins grew wider. 'Thank goodness!'

'Thank goodness yourself,' said Orc-Ray. 'You really got us out of a jam back there!'

'Thank goodness,' repeated Diana, rubbing her head.

Joseph suddenly appeared at the doorway, his face creased with concern. His curved Sword was drawn and he looked ready to take on everyone in the room with one swipe!

'What the Hell's going on, ' he demanded, pointing his sword at the Orcs.

'Hey, it's nice to see you too, Mueller!' said Ray.

'_Ray_mond?' said Joseph in disbelief, looking from one Orc to another. 'How the Hell did you manage that?'

How _had_ they managed that? Diana looked to the Orc that should be Presto intending to ask, but she suddenly realised what was wrong with this situation. She had three missing friends, but there were _four_ Orcs in the room.

As she opened her mouth to say something, the extra Orc waved its hand and there was a faint shimmer of the air.

The Orc disguises fell away before her eyes. Bobby, Presto Ray and… _Varla_!

Diana stared at the newcomer, but suddenly everything seemed to make sense. It was Varla, different clothes, different hairstyle, but it was still the Illusionist!

A grin spread over her face. So that was how they had managed to get in!

Diana wasn't watching properly, but even so, she noticed the odd, confused look that Joseph gave Varla. But at the time, she had other things to worry about.

'Varla?' squeaked Sheila happily. 'How did you find the others?'

'She found us,' explained Ray, looking very slightly embarrassed. 'It's a long story. Maybe I'll tell you it sometime.'

'We've got more urgent things to worry about,' said Diana.

'And then some!' said Ray.

'Well, Tang's gone!' added Joseph. 'That damn thing vanished the moment our backs were turned!'

'Don't worry about him,' Ray was saying, waving his Staff at Joseph in an authoritative manner. 'He's good at looking after himself. Bet he could knock their socks off if he felt like it, as there's a lot more to that little dragon that there looks. He'll be fine.'

'That's all very well,' said Joseph, 'but I wasn't worried about him! This whole place will be in uproar in a few minutes. They are going to want those _two_ to hunt for Tang!' he pointed at the ground were Hank and Eric lay.

'Help us get them up,' the Acrobat said to Joseph. 'Now all we need is the Crystal.'

'Are you sure it's gonna work?' said Ray.

Diana scowled at him. This wasn't a good time to be having doubts.

'Dungeonmaster said to take them and we will.'

'You're gonna take them through a portal like _that_?' said Ray incredulously, pointing to the two boys. 'That doesn't sound like such a great idea to me!'

'We don't have a lot of other options. Besides, Dungeonmaster said take them to the crystal, and that's just what we're gonna do!'

'But how?' said Sheila reasonably. 'I know it's here somewhere, but we hardly have time to…'

'I know where it is,' said Varla suddenly.

Diana frowned, and opened her mouth. But Presto beat her to the question.

'How do _you_ know?' he asked.

'You think I do not study my enemy?' she hissed. 'You think I do not know their secrets?'

But Varla wasn't looking at Presto any more, she was looking at Joseph, and Diana was sure she was missing something.

'It doesn't matter,' insisted Sheila. 'We've gotta go! These two aren't going to stay this was for long! And the real Orcs around gonna come looking for them!'

'Let's go!' said Diana.

She pulled the unconscious Eric up and Presto caught the other arm and slipped it over his shoulder. Ray and Sheila pulled up Hank, and Bobby held on to Ray's Staff, ready to help more if necessary.

Slowly and quietly they moved off, led by Varla.

They moved through the halls of the castle without seeing any Orcs. Diana knew she should be pleased, and knew she should have felt safer, now that they had the power of Varla's illusions to help hide them. But her fears were growing every second. This felt wrong in so many ways.

'What's going on,' she asked Presto, who was still struggling along at the other side of the Cavalier. 'What's Varla got to do with all of this?'

'We found her,' Presto explained breathlessly. 'She has a grudge against Venger. She was going to kill them, but we persuaded her to let us take them away instead. She can use illusions.'

Diana thought the last part was unnecessary.

'But can you trust her?' she mouthed.

Presto frowned, maybe wanting to say yes, but unable to hide from the truth.

'Don't know,' he mouthed back, shaking his head.

They travelled through the corridors of the Castle, round to the far side, away from the courtyard and all the noise. This part was virtually silent and every scraping footstep and light breath seemed to echo with unbearable volume.

They stopped for a while at a junction, then Varla led them left. A few minutes later they came to an abrupt stop. It was a dead end.

Diana looked to Presto in confusion, and the Magician looked away, his expression afraid.

'Great,' said Joseph. 'Now what!'

'Be quiet!' Varla ordered. 'Put them down and help me push.'

'What?' asked Joseph, giving her a nasty sneer.

She pointed to the wall.

'This is a secret doorway to Lord Venger's Vault.'

'It's a wall,' said Joseph.

'I'll get rid of it!' said Bobby, stepping forward and lifting his Club.

'No!' said Varla harshly. 'The mechanism is delicate. We must push.'

Doubtfully, Diana left Eric down to the ground and Presto did the same.

'How?' she asked Varla.

'There are pressure points, we must find and push them all in the correct order.'

For the next few minutes they stood by the wall, doing as Varla instructed them, and all clearly feeling as ridiculous as Diana felt.

But before there were more arguments, there was a sudden click and a grind of stone. To one side, back from the wall, a narrow door opened. Presto gave a sigh of relief, but Diana didn't share that feeling. There was something really weird going on.

Nevertheless they picked up the two boys and wriggled through the gap. The tunnel beyond was warmer than the Castle, it had a stale, dry smell that made her nose sore, and it wound round in a spiral, heading down all the time.

She sensed the fear and anticipation from the others, it seemed like they were getting closer to their goal, but still the feeling that something was going to go wrong was at the back of her mind. Could it _really_ be this simple?

At last, the ground levelled out and they reached a large metal door. Varla stopped.

'We are here,' she said. 'This is the Vault of Lord Venger.'

Eric groaned making the first noise in a long number of minutes. Diana looked down at him. He was stirring sluggishly. Not that she didn't _like_ having some sort of power over him, not to mention the ability to shut him up, she didn't really want to have to hit him again. It seemed unnecessarily cruel.

'Get the door open!' she hissed at Presto.

'But the Hat…'

'Just open it!'

Presto waved his hand over the Hat, mumbling something about _open sesame_. The Hat glowed faintly and fizzed, but nothing happened.

Presto gave an apologetic shrug.

'Let me try,' said Ray. 'I might be able to get some idea.'

He lifted up his Staff. Whatever the question was, he didn't say it out loud. He staggered.

'The door is protected by magic. And there's only one key. Venger has it.'

This was all going _wrong_! Diana ran her hand through her hair in despair, looking around for inspiration.

'What are we…?'

She never finished, as Bobby barged past swinging his Club, a thunderous look on his young face. The Acrobat only just had time to protect her eyes before Bobby swung at the wall beside the door.

When the dust cleared, amid much coughing, she could see inside. Much to her immense relief, she could see the Crystal of Kronos, bathing the shattered room in cold, blue light.

'Come on!' she said. They were close, so close. So wonderfully close… all they had to do was get to it and everything would be ok!

Then something moved, from behind the crystal and her heart virtually stopped in fear. There was such raw power that her skin began to prickle.

She never knew anything could be so _evil. _The hunched, twisted figure before them would haunt her nightmares for the rest of her life.

_Venger_.

* * *


	14. Time Will Win

Chapter 14

Time Will Win

The figure of Venger stepped forward once again. He was still crippled, and maybe even in pain, but that didn't stop Diana shrinking back. His face was drained of emotion, like a ghost, and that made his seem all the more threatening.

She shivered, afraid in his presence in a way she had never been before. This creature was not the same as the Venger from the Realm she had known. In that broken reality, Venger had been powerful, dangerous, even deadly, but this man had a new aspect that she hadn't seen before: _Hatred_. Genuine hatred so pure and refined, was rare. She had seen in very occasionally back home, when there had been some bigot who hated her for the colour of her skin. But even that hatred paled when compared to the emotion in Venger. Few people have the capacity for such hatred, and fewer have the desire to act upon it.

And now she was faced by a man who had both, and the power to exact whatever revenge he wanted. That was the first time she had ever doubted their ability to win.

She shivered once more as he looked round at the group, his eyes finally fixing on Diana herself. Beside her, Sheila and Ray let Hank slid to the ground, and Presto released his grip on Eric, forcing Diana to do the same as he was too heavy to support unaided.

Venger took another stumbling step forward, and red light glowed at hiss fingertips.

'You will not take my sons from me!' he said. 'You will not…'

Venger stopped abruptly.

'You!' he hissed. '_You!_'

Diana wasn't quite sure who he was talking about, then Varla stepped forward from behind Presto, her chin lifted up, her eyes full of an unexpected malice. _Varla_?

'Varla?' said Presto, his face showing his shock.

'Varla!' said Venger. 'I should have known you would return, treacherous serpent!'

'_Varla_?' whispered Presto.

Diana instinctively reached out and took his hand, trying to keep him steady. He was shaking.

'How could you, child?' asked Lord Venger his voice rasping with anger. 'How could you turn against your own? How could you turn against your _family_!'

Diana felt Presto start at the word, though her own surprise was no less. _Family_?

'Family!' spat Varla. 'You hated me as you loved your sons! You hated my mother too, and my _real_ father!'

Venger's face suddenly contorted in fury, wiping away the indifference in a moment and sending a spike of terror through Diana's heart. But Varla continued as if she hadn't noticed.

'You never cared for either of us! That's why she ran when she had the chance! She took the chance to get away from you!'

There was a profound silence. Diana could felt herself shaking, but she was unable to stop. At last, the emptiness was filled by soft groan. Eric pushed himself up slowly from where he was lying and he looked around the room in confusion.

Then his gaze fell on Varla.

'Varla…?'

Varla's smile grew softer as she looked down at Eric, but a totally unexpected thrill of jealousy passed through Diana, momentarily smothering her fear.

Then the Illusionist looked back to Venger, her head high and her shoulders set firm.

'I came to kill them, both of them, so you would understand,' she said. 'But these others were going to take them through the Crystal to another time.'

The only surprising thing about that statement was how completely unsurprised Venger was. He merely nodded.

'I have waited many years,' Venger said. 'He warned me one day that this would happen, and I have prepared.'

Presto had turned away from Varla, sickened at her sudden betrayal; Joseph had looked away as well. Bobby and Sheila were close together, holding each other tightly, with Ray standing protectively in front. Only Diana looked at Venger as he spoke.

And he looked back, no longer hollow and empty of emotion, but filled with a dreadful power that seemed to suck the soul out of everything nearby. The surrounding darkness seemed blacker and more threatening than she had ever seen before.

'So you are from the Other Realm?' Venger asked her.

She nodded, unable to find the courage to speak.

'You are finally here.' Venger gave a long sigh. 'At last.'

Diana kept watching, the fear slowly changing into curiosity. How had this happened? How did he know about them? And what had happened to Eric and Hank? It all seemed _important_, somehow.

'How?' she managed to say.

'Their arrival came with a warning that others would follow, one day,' Venger replied, his eyes fixed on hers. 'Other Young Ones, the Acrobat, the Magician, the Thief and the Barbarian. And I have waited many, many years for that combination.' An icy smile spread across his face. 'But you cannot return them to the Other Realm.'

'Y-you can't stop us!' said Diana. At that moment, she didn't even believe it herself, but she couldn't just give in.

'I do not need to stop you, foolish child,' he replied. 'If you go through that crystal, you will not change them. You cannot. You do not have the power to do that.'

'A-are you so sure?' she said in a high-pitching, shaking voice.

Venger nodded slowly.

'The change I wrought is in their very souls. The Old Man could not imagine the power I have poured into them both. You cannot return, and his riddle is rendered meaningless.'

The coldest, most hopeless fear spread through her. After all of this, all that they had done, everything, she couldn't believe that there was no way back.

'We can still take them through,' she said, her voice sounding high-pitched and desperate. 'We can go back…'

'How little you know of Time,' he said pityingly. 'But even if you did return, you may gain your old friends, but you will loose your new ones.'

Venger looked at Ray and Joseph, a small smirk playing on his lips.

'I don't understand,' she said.

'Time must always win, Acrobat. You cannot change what has been, you can't alter the ultimate Fate. If you returned to the failed Realm just after you left, you would be consigning your new friends to _nothing_.'

'N-nothing?'

Venger leaned forward, his eyes gleaming with pinpricks of red fire.

'They would be ripped out of history, their lives vanishing forever, and there would be no power that could save them from Time itself. They would be gone, forgotten by everything and everyone, even you!'

Diana was stunned into silence for a few moments. Her memories of the Old Realm were fading fast, but she could still remember what it was like when Eric and Hank were her friends. But stronger and more vibrant were the memories that she had of her life without them, with Joseph and Ray as her friends instead. Her heart lurched as she remembered her first date with Joseph, the way she had thought about nothing else for days afterwards. These memories were as precious to her as the time she had spent with Eric and Hank.

'You mean,' she murmured. 'You mean we would have to choose?'

Venger didn't answer. He didn't have to, the answer was written all over his face.

Aghast, Diana looked round at her friends, Sheila and Bobby, Presto, and over to Hank. Finally, she looked at Eric, and an intense yearning filled her heart. Then it was clear to her. She wanted to go home, to have everything put back the way it was, the way it _should_ have been. She would give anything for that… anything to change it back.

'Diana?' It was Joseph, and he was staring at her. 'You wouldn't have? Not really? Not him over me?'

'Joseph…'

'You _couldn't_!' the crushed, outraged tone made her recoil.

'Did I not warn you, Paladin, of _treachery_,' said Venger.

Joseph stared at her.

'Joseph…?'

'Enough!' said Venger loudly. 'Those who's loyalty I can rely upon, step forth!'

Immediately, Eric pushed himself to his feet, staring daggers at Diana as he rose. Then he leaned down to help his brother rise and they moved to beside their Father.

Venger then looked at Joseph.

'Do you wish to share in their punishment, Paladin? For if you remain with them, your reward will be oblivion!'

Joseph stared at the ground, and Diana wanted to move over to him, to reach out to him and say she was sorry, but she was rooted to the spot. She had known all along that this wasn't right, it wasn't that way it was supposed to be, no matter how wonderful it had been.

'And you Varla, my child?' asked Venger. 'Do you wish to rejoin your family?'

He held out his hand and the Illusionist stepped towards him. There was no smile or joy on her face, but a look of forlorn hope. For a moment, Diana felt a glimmer of pity for a lost child wandering far from her home.

Varla stepped up to Venger, right up before him, and bowed.

He leaned down and tipped her head up, but there was no smile on his face, and no other emotion.

'Varla,' he said tenderly, holding her face in his hands as if holding a precious treasure. 'You shall never understand how much I lost when I lost you.'

'I'm sorry, Father.'

Venger nodded.

'You have such beauty and such power. And so much more you will never know.'

'Father…?

'But you do know the penalty for _disobedience_!'

Then Varla screamed and the wretched sound shattered the peace of the room. Her hands flew to her head as light began to pour out of her eyes. For a few moments she seemed to glow incandescent with magic, then she dropped to the floor.

Beside Diana, Presto started.

'Presto, no!' shouted Diana. 'Presto!'

But the Magician didn't listen to her. He rushed towards Venger, his Hat suddenly glowing green.

He had barely gone four steps when Venger gave a careless flick of his hand, and red fire erupted round Presto. He fell.

'Presto!' wailed Sheila. 'Oh, God _Presto_!'

She took a few steps forward too, but something grabbed her round the waist and pulled her back. The Thief screamed in pain, writhing against something that seemed to be crushing her. The Thief's body began to buckle in the wrong direction, her shoulders hunching and her legs twisting the opposite way, as if she was being wrung out by giant hands.

Diana saw Hank smile, the purest, most evil smile she had ever seen. And it galvanised her into action.

'Scatter!' she screamed.

Though everyone moved, the tactic that had worked so well so many times seemed to fail.

Diana darted to the side, using her natural agility to generate enough speed for a jump. But instead of moving her forward, her Javelin seemed to fold under her weight. A few moments later, Eric grabbed her arm and pulled her round, slamming her against the far wall so hard that it brought tears of pain to her eyes.

'No!' he hissed.

She could see the malice in his expression, and he held her fast.

The others were doing no better.

Bobby was pulling as his sister, and Sheila was still writhing in pain against unseen power. Then Ray jumped forward, bringing his staff cracking down across the side of Hank's head. The magic around Sheila stopped, but she fell to the ground unmoving.

The Ranger staggered, but then he turned, a surge of red light in his hand.

Ray jumped back, closer to the Crystal as fast as he could, but the blast knocked the feet out from under him.

As the Sage tumbled to the floor, Joseph moved forward, swinging his Sword. It seemed to vibrate, as it sent waves of sound through the blasted stones, lifting them up.

Using all her strength, Diana brought her arm round as fast as she could, catching Eric's own arm, and she managed to just break free of Eric's hold for long enough to move. She darted to beside Joseph, lifting her Javelin to protect herself.

Bobby was sobbing beside his sister, and Diana could see the fearsome anger building inside the Barbarian. Any moment, he was going to snap. And when he did, he would be destroyed.

But for the moment, everything was still. Diana looked down at the others as they lay. Ray twitched slightly, but neither Presto nor Sheila moved.

Venger was no longer fighting, he was just watching. Hank was rubbing the side of his head, and Eric was glaring darkly at her.

Joseph was still beside Diana and she smiled hopefully at him.

But he didn't return her smile.

Instead he let the Sword fall from his hands, and it clanged on the stone ground. Then he took a step backwards, away from her, his eyes suddenly a stark, cold blue.

'J-Joseph?' she whispered.

'I don't owe you anything.'

'But our friends. Ray, Sheila…'

Just behind him, the Crystal of Kronos winked and sparkled in the low light. They had been so close to success, they had done everything that they could, and they had still failed. She had failed. She had failed Joseph and Ray, and Bobby, Presto and Sheila. She had fail Hank and Eric too. She had failed Dungeonmaster. They would never go home.

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Venger smile, and raise his hand. Eric stepped forward too, like a predator sensing a weakened prey.

There was nothing she could do. There was no way out.

This was the end.

'Please. Please _no_…!'

And she screamed.

* * *

Ray ached with pain, sick at the sight of what lay in front of him.

Everything was gone, Presto was already lying there, lifeless; Diana stood alone against Eric and Hank; Joseph had turned away. Bobby broken by loss and _Sheila_… His heart lurched when he thought about her.

He had to do something. He had to try. The Paladin's beautiful curved Sword was lying on the ground close by.

_Concentrate_, he told himself. He clutched the Staff tightly. _You're only going to get the one chance_!

Venger had told him what to do; the Crystal needed power to control it. Well, his Staff he power, maybe not enough, but he was going to do it anyway. _Time always wins_… he thought. _Well, I will go back, and I will stop Venger._

He took a glance at Sheila's prone body, then Presto, and his resolve grew stronger. He would go back further, back into the past and change it. He would get to Venger or this crystal before the change happened. He would stop Venger from taking Eric and Hank from their rightful homes. He would put it back the way it should be. He would. _He would_!

Yes.

That's what he would do. He would do it right _now_.

He rolled to his right, narrowly avoiding the unexpected smash of Hank's fist, grabbing the Sword as he moved, though he didn't know what good it was going to do. Then he pushed himself off the ground, and ran.

He held the Staff up, an command forming in his mind, and the colours of the room shifted from blue to purple to a rich ruby red.

A whirlpool of light formed at the surface of the Crystal, and though he had no idea if it was right, he didn't stop. There was always a change this would achieve nothing, that he would be wiped out of History, just as Venger had said. It was too late, he couldn't back out now. He had nothing left here anyway.

He heard a girl scream, cut short all too soon. He heard a cry of furious anger.

But Ray didn't look back.

Instead, he leaped forwards towards the blinding light of the Crystal.

Wrenching agony filled his head and there was a roar, a blend of echoes from another world.

And then there was nothing at all.

* * *


	15. Epilogue

Epilogue  
Time _Always_ Wins

At first all he could hear was the sound of the wind. Wherever he was, it seemed hot, the air felt dry in his nose, and he was sure that if he inhaled too deeply, he could start to cough.

Ray forced his eyes open.

He was face down on a dusty stone floor, inside a small forgotten room, like the anteroom of a temple. There was a door to his left, that showed endless sand and a bright, blue sky, but other than that, he had no idea where he was.

'Greetings, Raymond,' said a kindly voice above him. Ray looked up.

A short old man was standing there, with long grey-white hair and shining eyes, he was wearing a red robe, and Ray noticed the bright crystal that hung around his neck.

'What? What happened? Who are you?'

'You have travelled through space and time,' the old man told him. 'You have come back, to here and now, where your present is the past, and the future is yet to be written.'

Ray closed his eyes for a few seconds, trying to remember. He could remember the blue light from the Crystal, the others were…

'What about my friends?' he asked suddenly. 'Are they safe? Are they alright, at least?'

The old man looked sombre for a moment.

'I do not know fully what has transpired,' he told Ray. 'But your friends are neither safe, nor in danger.'

'What do you mean?'

'Raymond, the world you came from does not exist. You're friends are not there. They are not anywhere.'

'The other's are _gone_?'

Ray closed his eyes, thinking of the others, of Sheila and Presto. He'd failed.

'That world does not exist,' said the old man. 'Yet.'

Ray looked up sharply.

'_Yet_?'

'No. The Crystal of Kronos is a portal through Time. You have gone to a time before your friends have arrived in the Realm. Before they have even been born.'

'_Before_?' whispered Ray.

'Yes, Raymond.'

Ray frowned.

'How do you know my name?'

The old man just looked at him calmly.

'You're Dungeonmaster!' Ray said, with a sudden understanding. 'You're the one they spoke about!'

Dungeonmaster nodded.

'And I am _your_ Guide in the Realm of Dungeons and Dragons,' he said.

'Will I see them again?'

'Perhaps,' said Dungeonmaster. 'There are many trials ahead of you. But now you have the opportunity to stop Venger before he takes the children from their rightful parents and changes the Realm forever. If you succeed, you will save them.'

'Will I succeed?' he asked.

'Perhaps.' The old man looked immensely sad. 'But even if you do, they will not remember. You will have changed their past. They will not know you.'

'What if I _do _stop Venger? Can I save them? Can I save Sheila, and Presto and the others?'

'When the children are safe, everything will change.' Dungeonmaster gave him a smile. 'Be brave, Raymond! For Time must _always_ win.'

Ray looked out, to the lands beyond the cave, then down to the curved Sword on the floor.

'But what about me? What do I do? Where do I go… I don't know… I don't know what to do.'

'If you travel east towards the rising suns, you will soon find the place you are looking for.'

'But I don't know what I'm looking for!' he said.

'Do you not?'

He took a deep breath, and opened his mouth to say something. But the moment he looked round, the old man had gone.

Alone once more, Ray looked out of the stone doorway across the sands.

He looked once more at his Staff. The stone in the centre was grey and dead, so Ray let it fall to the floor and it cracked into three pieces.

At his feet was the curved Sword of the Paladin. He picked it up, hefting it in his hand the way Joseph had done. There was a sharp pang of pain at the memory of the betrayal.

But that was in his past now, and he was going to make sure it never became the future. He had to find Venger, and stop him from taking Hank and Eric. He would do it. There and then he promised himself he would do it, and see his friends, and see _Sheila_ again.

Ray walked off, his head held high, into his future.

Dungeonmaster watched Ray leave from a corner darkened by shadows, nodding to himself.

'Fear not,' he murmured. 'You will succeed. Though you have many trials to go through before you meet them again. And you will be a king, a great king. A king of many kings! For it is their destiny to come to this Realm and save it. And you shall see them again.'

* * *

The End!

-x-

For Scribbles

(and it's only a few months late)

* * *


End file.
